


Thomas Perspective

by arc852, HiddenDreamer67



Series: Perspective Series [6]
Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series), The Borrowers - All Media Types
Genre: Borrowers - Freeform, G/T, Human!Virgil, borrower, borrower!thomas, human!logan, human!patton, human!roman
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-19
Updated: 2020-01-19
Packaged: 2021-02-27 03:53:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 19
Words: 30,466
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22320610
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/arc852/pseuds/arc852, https://archiveofourown.org/users/HiddenDreamer67/pseuds/HiddenDreamer67
Summary: Welcome to Thomas Perspective! It’s had a few different names in production (one of which was Outnumbered Perspective) but rather than stick to our alphabet we decided to give this story the title it deserves. Hope you enjoy!
Series: Perspective Series [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1234694
Comments: 16
Kudos: 105





	1. In the Beginning, There was a Thomas

Thomas found that he enjoyed watching the humans go about their daily lives. Even if it was dangerous to do so. Usually, a borrower only really watched the humans long enough to get a feel for their schedule or as a quick check in to see if they were asleep so they could go out and borrow. But Thomas had found the four humans living in this building too interesting to simply stop watching them.

Right now, he was looking through a vent that was right above Virgil’s bed. The human who lived on the first floor of the complex. Thomas found himself watching this human the most, only because he was at home the most. Only going to go to classes or sometimes he would go hang out with the other humans in the building as well. 

Virgil was currently in bed, on his laptop doing…something. Thomas couldn’t actually see what it was. He leaned in a little closer, in order to try and see the screen better. Thomas frowned when Virgil’s head moved right in front of the screen and leaned closer accordingly. 

Thomas’ eyes widened as he kept leaning forward against his will and soon the vent was gone. Replaced by the open air below. He closed his eyes and landed with a hard ‘oof!’ Thankfully, whatever he had landed on was pretty soft, so he shouldn’t have more than a few bruises. 

He froze, when he realized the only thing he could have landed on was…He looked up, body going rigid. The human, Virgil, was _staring_ at him.

Virgil let out an strangled noise of surprise, throwing his laptop to one side and throwing his body to the other.

Thomas let out a similar noise as he found himself thrown off of Virgil and landing at the foot of the bed. He groaned as he laid there for a moment. It hadn’t hurt too bad, but if he wasn’t sure about that bruise before he was now.

“What the heck was that?!” Virgil scrambled to his feet, panicked at he tried to find the tiny thing on his bedspread again. His eyes locked onto it, and Virgil was relieved he didn’t have to deal with the paranoia of it going missing. 

Thomas lifted up his head, eyes going up and locking with Virgil’s. Oh, this wasn’t good. He had to get out of there! Thomas pushed himself up all the way, now standing on the uneven ground he did his best to make a run for it. He wasn’t sure where he was trying to run _to_ , he just knew he had to get as far away from the human as possible.

 _Oh geez, it’s fast._ Thinking quickly, Virgil looked around for something to catch it. Spotting a cardboard box on his desk, he dumped the contents on the floor before turning it over on top of the creature.

Thomas stopped when darkness fell over him. He blinked as his eyes adjusted quickly and frantically looked around. He put his hand against the wall, recognizing the material as cardboard. And a rather sturdy piece of cardboard at that. 

Thomas put his head in his hands. This was it. Virgil had caught him. 

…Was this where it ended for him?

Virgil took a deep breath. He could do this. Adults took care of creepy things in their houses all the time. 

Slowly, Virgil lifted the box up to check if it was still there.

As light flooded back and chased away the darkness, Thomas once again caught a glimpse of the human. The borrower backed away, shaking with every step.

Virgil’s eyes widened, only now getting a proper look at what had fallen onto him earlier. It was some sort of…little _person_ , no bigger than his hand.

“…no way.” Virgil spoke in a quiet breath, reaching his hand out to grab it.

Thomas’ eyes widened as he saw Virgil’s hand coming towards him and without thinking, he put his arms out in front of him and yelled, “No!”

The yell startled Virgil so much that the human yanked his hand back, dropping the box back down as well.

Virgil held his hand close to his chest, looking almost contemplatively at the box. “…you talked.”

Thomas winced, no longer able to see Virgil but hearing him loud and clear. He _had_ spoken, hadn’t he? Broke one of the borrower rules…well, several at this point.

Thomas sighed, maybe if he kept this going, he could convince Virgil to let him go?

…At the very least, maybe Virgil wouldn’t kill him. “Uh…yeah.” He called out, hoping it was loud enough for Virgil to hear.

Virgil lifted the box with both hands this time, completely revealing the tiny as he stared wide eyed down at him. “You just did it again.”

Pushing back his fear, Thomas nodded. “Yeah, I can uh…do that.” The borrower said, a bit lamely.

“I.. who…what _are_ you?” Virgil tossed the box aside, inching closer to the bed as he sat on his knees. 

Thomas bit his lip. It might be a bit too much to tell Virgil _what_ he was. But telling Virgil his name should be fine, right? “You can call me Thomas?” It came out as more of a question.

“Thomas.” Virgil tried it out for himself, before realizing he should introduce himself. “I’m Virgil.”

“I kno-” Thomas stopped himself, realizing that could go over badly. “I mean uh, cool.” Thomas bit his lip and looked off to the side, feeling a little awkward.

Virgil frowned, squinting suspiciously down at Thomas. “…why were you on my bed, Thomas?”

Thomas tensed at not only the question, but Virgil’s gaze and tone. “Um, I didn’t mean to be! I mean, I hadn’t planned on falling on you or anything I just kind of…slipped.” 

Virgil looked up and around his bed, spotting the vent just above his head. Virgil turned back to Thomas, looking annoyed. “Were you spying on me?”

Panic settled inside of Thomas and he took several steps back. Should he lie? It was technically true, but Virgil seemed very annoyed right now. Which was just one step away from being angry and an angry human was the worst kind to be around. “I, uh…” Thomas trailed off before getting another idea.

He turned around and started running again.

“Hey!” Virgil all but launched himself onto the bed as he grabbed Thomas up with no hesitation this time. He glared down at Thomas, bringing him up to his face. “You _were_ spying!”

Thomas struggled within Virgil’s grip but of course it was useless. The fingers surrounding him weren’t going to give in. “Okay, okay! Yes, I was, but I didn’t mean anything bad by it! I watch everyone in the building!” Thomas’ eyes widened when he realized saying that wouldn’t exactly help his case. “I-I mean, well, I do but again, not in a bad way. I do it for uh…survival.” Thomas couldn’t stop shaking. Why couldn’t he have just kept his mouth _shut._

“Survival?” Virgil repeated. “What are you talking about?” After all, Virgil was just your average college kid who ate too much ramen and didn’t get enough sleep. There was nothing especially extraordinary about him, which made the idea of a mini person watching him through the vents all the more creepy.

Well, now Thomas had a choice to make. Should he reveal that sort of information? Or die keeping it to himself?

…Yeah, he was gonna go with that first option.

“Okay. I…live inside the walls of this building. I borrow things from humans in order to survive and I watch all of you so I can see if it’s safe for me to…get things. It’s-we’re not supposed to be caught, it’s dangerous.” Thomas pushed against the fingers again to make that last point.

“So, let me get this straight.” Virgil’s voice went dangerously calm. “Not only have you been stalking us, you’re also a thief as well.” He gave Thomas a slight squeeze.

Thomas gasped as the grip got tighter for a second. He looked up at Virgil with pleading eyes. “I’m sorry, I’m really sorry, just _please_ don’t kill me!”

“Why shouldn’t I?” Virgil growled. Of course, looking down at Thomas Virgil knew he could never, ever do it. Virgil was too much of a wuss to even kill a spider. And he understood that sometimes people down on their luck occasionally felt the need to turn to a life of crime.

That being said…this was Virgil’s home. His safe space. The idea that someone had been trespassing and taking his things was deeply unsettling to Virgil, and he wanted to ensure it never happened again.

Thomas’ eyes widened and he found his struggles ceasing. _He’s actually going to kill me._ Thomas had been hoping Virgil wouldn’t be like that, he had seemed nice enough but…of course you could never know for sure. Humans acted differently towards his kind because they saw them as lesser beings. Some treated them like pets, others like pests. _I guess I’m just a pest to Virgil._

With downcast eyes, Thomas just barely held in his tears. “I-I don’t know…I just don’t-don’t want to die…”

Virgil paused, realizing he might have gone too far. He felt Thomas shake in his hand. “Aw, hey, come on…” Virgil winced, bringing his other hand up to try and awkwardly pat the top of Thomas’ head.

“Ah!” Thomas tried his best to duck as he felt something come in contact with his head. He didn’t want this to be it. He didn’t want to die! “No, please! I’ll do anything, please don’t kill me!” Hot tears fell, staining his cheeks.

“Calm down!” Virgil held Thomas as far away from his body as possible, looking frantic. _Oh no, what do I do…_ “I’m not going to kill you!”

Thomas froze, slowly looking up at Virgil with tears still falling. “W-What?” Was this some sort of trick? A lie? “B-But…I-you-the spying…and-and…”

“Yeah, I know, but…” Virgil groaned, rubbing his free hand across his face. “Look, I’m still mad about that stuff, but I’m not going to _kill_ you over this. So just…calm down. Please.” Virgil really didn’t know how to handle other people’s emotions. Or his own, for that matter.

Thomas bit his lip. “Y-You promise? This isn’t some trick and you aren’t just going to kill me anyways?” He knew humans to be cruel and loved to play what they thought to be jokes, but was really just a cruel form of torture.

“No!” Virgil made a face at Thomas’ suggestion. “Ugh, no. I’m not trying to deceive you or anything, I promise. Really, I may act scary but I wouldn’t hurt a fly.” This also had to do with the fact that flies tend to fly fast and Virgil was an inherently lazy human, but he didn’t mention that.

“O-Okay.” Thomas didn’t know why, but he believed him. It was true, that out of all the times he had watched Virgil, the one time he had seen him interact with a fly had been of opening a window to let it out.

So, that was good. Virgil wasn’t going to kill him. But that still left a very important question. “Then, what are you going to do?”


	2. Virgil don't cage people that's rude

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Virgil cages people anyway.

Virgil wasn’t sure. He looked around the room, trying to figure out what one was supposed to do when they found a tiny thief spying on their room. Virgil’s eyes landed on his open closet door, and suddenly he got an idea. 

He stood up, walking over and grabbing the cardboard box to contain Thomas temporarily. “Wait here,” Virgil instructed, placing it where it could still be in view as he dug through the closet.

“Huh?” Thomas blinked as he was suddenly deposited _inside_ the cardboard box. “W-Wait!” What was happening? What was Virgil doing?

Virgil ignored Thomas’ cries, focusing on the task at hand. Earlier, when Thomas had been struggling around in Virgil’s hand, it had felt similar to when Virgil would hold his pet hamster, Sacajawea. She had passed away last semester, but Virgil had kept all the supplies just in case he ever decided to get another. Now, at last, he would get some use out of it. 

“Here we are,” Virgil said triumphantly, pulling out the familiar plastic cage. He cleared a spot on his desk for it before returning to grab Thomas out of the box.

Thomas couldn’t help but struggle again as he grabbed once more. Thomas’ eyes scanned the room, wondering what Virgil meant, when he saw something on the desk that hadn’t been there before. “W-Wait! No!” Thomas’ struggling got more desperate.

“Oh yeah.” Virgil gave an evil grin, opening up the cage door one-handed with practiced ease and tossing Thomas inside.

Thomas yelped and groaned as he found himself face down on the cage floor. But he quickly stood up, looking at Virgil. “Virgil, please.”

Virgil simply closed the door, looking a bit smug about how conveniently this was working out.

“Virgil!” This wasn’t good. He ran to the door, putting his hands on the bars and trying to open it. But it was indeed locked. “You can’t just keep me here!”

“Why not?” Virgil shrugged. “You admitted to being a thief and a stalker. Some jail time seems more than appropriate.”

Thomas deflated. “I-I did it to survive.” Thomas tried weakly.

“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean it’s right.” Virgil pointed out, sitting down at his desk chair. “You could’ve asked for help when you fell on hard times. I mean, you probably don’t eat much anyways. I would have helped you out.”

Thomas blinked. “We…We can’t just _ask_ humans for help! That would be _crazy_.” Thomas shook his head, backing away from the door and Virgil. “It’s the whole reason why borrowers are so secretive! If a human sees us or catches us, we’re _done_ for! You may not be one of the humans who wants to kill me, but…” Thomas motioned around him at the cage. “You…you did trap me in here.”

“Yeah, because _you_ stole from me first.” Virgil reminded him, crossing his arms. He narrowed his eyes. “What exactly did you take?”

Thomas pursed his lips. Well, he was already in this deep, why not go deeper? “I just took things like paper clips, bits of tinfoil, crumbs left out, maybe a cracker or chip or two…t-things you wouldn’t miss if they were gone. That’s all.”

Well, Thomas was right about one thing. Virgil certainly didn’t miss them. He hadn’t noticed anything going missing around the house.

“You know…” Virgil leaned forward, folding his hands under his chin as his arms rested on his knees. “…it’s interesting how you call yourself a ‘borrower’. Guess we can add liar to your list of crimes too, huh?”

Thomas took a step back. “W-What? I’m not lying.” Also, he had just realized he had revealed the name of his kind, which was also a problem, but not the biggest one right now.

“Oh really?” Virgil raised an eyebrow. “So you’re just ‘borrowing’ all that stuff? When were you planning on putting it back, huh?”

Thomas winced. “I didn’t come up with that name! It’s just-I…” Thomas took a deep breath. Honestly, whoever had come up with their name either didn’t understand the term borrowing or had a sense of humor. In either case, it wasn’t helping him out now. 

“Look. I’ll leave. I’ll find somewhere else to live, somewhere where I can’t spy or take things from you. Just _please_ let me go and you’ll never have to deal with me again.” Thomas proposed, heart pounding with nerves and hope.

Virgil certainly liked the sound of that. But, Thomas was also kind of growing on him. Now that he knew Thomas wasn’t able to do any of those personally invasive things, Thomas just looked kind of…sad. Helpless. Alone.

“Nah.” Virgil shook his head, keeping up his villainous act. “I don’t think you’ve really learned your lesson yet, Thomas.”

Thomas shook at those words, his hope gone. He felt numb. All of this could have been avoided if he hadn’t made such a stupid mistake. Now he was trapped, with a human that would likely be punishing him for things he had no choice but to do.

He found himself falling to the floor, curling up as he hugged his knees. 

Virgil froze, watching Thomas curl up on himself. _Whoops_. Maybe he went a little too far again.

“Uh…Thomas?” Virgil knocked on the bars to get the borrower’s attention.

Thomas tensed, but kept his head down and braced himself. He didn’t want to see it coming, whatever Virgil was going to do.

“Thomas.” Virgil snapped his fingers in front of the cage. “C’mon, snap out of it. I’m not gonna hurt you, remember?”

The snap of Virgil’s fingers caused him to jump and made him look up. “You said you wouldn’t kill me…you never said anything about not _hurting_ me.” 

“Ugh, fine.” Virgil rolled his eyes, only slightly annoyed. “I’m not going to hurt you. Okay? Are we cool now?”

Thomas frowned. “…Will you let me go?”

“No,” Virgil answered coolly.

Thomas winced at how quickly Virgil had answered. “Why? Wouldn’t it be better for me to leave the building and then you never have to deal with me again?” 

“Look, Thomas.” Virgil sighed. “Would that be convenient? Sure. But then you’re just gonna go rob some other unsuspecting stranger.”

Thomas himself was starting to get frustrated with this. “Because that’s how I _survive_. Would you rather I die? Because that’s what’s gonna happen if I don’t do that or if I even try to ask a human for help.” 

“No, it’s not!” Virgil insisted. “Because I’m gonna help you.”

Thomas froze. “Wait, what?”

“You seem very determined to either commit crimes or die.” Virgil pointed out. “And I don’t want you doing either, to be honest. So I’ll just help you myself. You just ask me for something and I’ll get it.”

“…But I don’t _want_ that!” Thomas cried, even if the prospect of having everything he needed right then and there was amazing. He never wanted it like this. “I don’t want to be here! I don’t want to be in this _cage_!” Why couldn’t Virgil understand that?

“That’s temporary.” Virgil waved his concerns off. “Without it, you’d just go running off on me. Don’t even try to deny it.”

“I won’t! But put yourself in _my_ shoes. Wouldn’t _you_ try to run away if the giant who captured you trapped you inside a cage? And made you think they were going to kill you, even for a second? Not a great first impression.”

“Okay!” Virgil put his hands up in defense. “I didn’t make a great first impression. I seldom do. But to be fair, you didn’t do so great yourself. You fell on me while I was studying because you were spying on me to decide when to steal my stuff. Put yourself in _my_ shoes for a moment.”

Thomas grit his teeth and turned away. He would try to argue, but it didn’t seem like Virgil was really listening. Besides, Thomas could… _maybe_ see his point a little, but his situation was still worse.

“…yeah, that’s what I thought.” Virgil took Thomas’ silence as agreement. “Look, let’s just…both agree that we’ve screwed up in the past, and continue forwards on a clean slate.”

Thomas glared up at Virgil. “Not sure how we can do that when you’ve already messed up my whole life.” The borrower murmured, starting to curl in on himself again.

“Now you’re being more dramatic than Roman.” Virgil rolled his eyes. “I didn’t mess up your life, okay? I’m fixing it.” _Now be grateful_. Virgil kept that last bit to himself.

Thomas continued to look down and pick at his clothes. Virgil would just continue to ignore him if he tried to speak again.

And Thomas was scared that if he tried to speak again it would come out more as sobs than actual words.


	3. I Think Virgil's Trying?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Is this what trying to be a decent person looks like?

Virgil glanced at the clock, realizing it was getting late. Maybe some food would help lift Virgil’s mood and get Thomas to trust him.

“Hey Thomas,” Virgil tried taking a slightly calmer tone, “are you hungry?”

Thomas went to shake his head but stopped when his stomach growled, as if answering Virgil’s question for him. He blushed.

“I’ll take that as a yes,” Virgil smirked. He stood up, pausing before he left. “…uh, what do you eat, exactly?”

Thomas sighed. “Anything.” He said simply.

“Alright.” Virgil shrugged, heading to the kitchen. It was kind of pointless to ask Thomas in the first place, considering there was only one thing in his cupboards. Virgil began heating up a pot of water on the stove, putting some ramen into the pot and stirring it around. Slowly the food began to take form. 

Now Virgil faced a new problem. He began dishing out some for himself, looking around for a proper dish for Thomas. 

“Sorry.” Virgil returned, carrying two bowls. He set them down on the desk, opening up the cage door. “This is the smallest bowl I could find.” Virgil set the saucer inside near Thomas. “Also I…don’t have any tiny silverware.”

Thomas stood up as the bowl was set down in front of him. It smelled so good, he had to admit. At first, he had been thinking about not eating as a form of protest but…he _was_ hungry. And this might be his only chance at finally having warm food.

Giving in, Thomas did what he saw the humans do and blow on the food before grabbing a noodle out. He took a bite, eyes closing in pure bliss. It was just so… _nice_. His _insides_ actually felt warm.

Virgil smiled slightly over the lip of his own bowl, glad to see Thomas enjoying it.

Thomas continued to eat until he found he couldn’t eat anymore. Huh, this must be what if felt like to be full. He looked in the bowl, only to see he had maybe eaten only a third of it. There was still plenty to eat for later. 

Opening up his bag, he made some room before grabbing a noodle and rolling it up, placing it inside.

Virgil paused, his utensil halfway to his lips. “…what are you doing?”

Thomas froze, forgetting he had an audience. “…Nothing.”

“Oh my gosh,” Virgil said in realization. “You were just ‘borrowing’, weren’t you? When there’s literally more food still just sitting in front of you.”

Thomas winced. “I-It’s a force of habit, okay?” Thomas bit his lip. “And it’s for…just in case.” Just in case Virgil decided to change his mind and he wouldn’t be getting any more meals.

“Whatever.” Virgil just sipped more of his own ramen, fighting the urge to roll his eyes again. He didn’t care if Thomas took a few noodles, it just felt stupid.

Thomas sighed in relief but decided not to take any more noodles. He closed his bag up before heading towards the far corner of the cage and sitting down.

“…are you still hungry?” Virgil asked, watching the borrower sulk off. He hadn’t meant to drive Thomas further away. 

Thomas simply shook his head, gripping the strands of his bag tighter subconsciously. He was thankful for the food, sure, but that didn’t negate his current situation. He was in a cage, after all. Trapped with a human that saw his actions for survival, crimes. A full belly was not worth all that.

Virgil took out the saucer, closing the cage door before bringing both sets of dishes back into the kitchen. He scrubbed them off, trying to think about what he should do next. What was one supposed to do with a borrower, anyways? 

Virgil didn’t want to do anything that would upset Thomas further. He seemed to have done that enough already. Virgil sighed, drying out the bowls as he put them back in the cupboard. Why couldn’t Thomas see that Virgil was just trying to protect him? 

Virgil walked back into the bedroom, feeling unsure of himself but trying not to look it. He casually took a seat back at his desk, resting his hands in his pockets. “Sooooo…” Virgil’s sentence petered off, realizing he had nothing to say.

Thomas gripped the nearest bar, looking at it sadly. “…There really isn’t anything I can do to get you to let me go?” Thomas asked, not looking at Virgil. There was no hope in his voice because he already knew the answer. But he felt the need to ask anyway.

“Aw, c’mon.” Virgil winced, curling in on himself slightly. “Don’t be like that. It’s not going to be terrible, I promise.”

Thomas hummed in a tone of disagreement and finally let go of the bar. He brought his knees to his chest and started picking at the fabric of his pants. Not going to be terrible…Thomas didn’t understand why Virgil couldn’t see things from his perspective. How things were _already_ terrible.

“…Look.” Virgil tried to reason with him, hating to see Thomas so depressed. He glanced at the clock. “It’s late, okay? How about we get some sleep, and in the morning we can find a compromise.”

A compromise? Thomas had to wonder how that would be possible, considering the two of them wanted _very_ different things. But he nodded anyway. It wasn’t like arguing with the human would do him any good. Virgil might have _said_ he wouldn’t hurt Thomas, but he was not willing to push it.

“Good.” Virgil nodded in relief. This was good. At least Thomas seemed willing to listen. Otherwise, this would be difficult. Virgil began to gather up his school supplies that had been scattered earlier, clearing off his bed. He couldn’t work on homework right now even if he wanted to; instead, Virgil glanced back at the cage, wondering what he should do about bedding for Thomas. 

“Uh…one sec.” Virgil retreated to the living room, looking for the smallest blanket he could possibly find. Even folded up it would be difficult to fit through the cage door, but Virgil reasoned he could just lift the roof off temporarily.

With this in mind, Virgil returned to the bedroom. He set the blanket down on the desk, opening the cage door.

“Could you step out for a moment, Thomas?” Virgil requested.

Thomas blinked, looking from Virgil to the blanket and then at the open cage door. Hesitantly, he stood up. Gripping his bag tight, he slowly made his way to the front, before stopping for a moment. Was this a test or some cruel trick? Would he be punished if he stepped out? Would he be punished if he didn’t?

These thoughts had him frozen at the door of the cage.

Virgil blinked. “I meant all the way.”

Thomas winced and he stepped all the way out, moving to the side and away from Virgil. He watched curiously, wondering why Virgil had wanted him out of the cage all of a sudden.

Virgil leaned over, focusing on the latches holding the plastic roof in place. As these came undone, Virgil set the apparatus to the side. Then Virgil picked up the folded blanket, carefully shoving it into the bottom of the cage.

Thomas tilted his head in confusion and almost wasted his time watching what was happening, before realizing that…Virgil was distracted. And Thomas was no longer confined in the cage. Now was his chance!

Thomas started by backing up slowly, keeping his eyes on Virgil as he did so. Once he was halfway across the desk, he turned and started running towards the desk lamp. If he could just make it over there, he could climb down the cord and get into the walls. He just needed Virgil distracted for a few more seconds.–

“Aaand there we go.” Virgil stood up from his handiwork. He looked over to where he had left Thomas, only to see that Thomas was no longer there. Eyes widening, Virgil spotted Thomas making a break from it further along the table. Virgil lunged forwards to grab the borrower.

“Ah!” Thomas yelled as he saw Virgil’s hand incoming. He had just barely been able to dodge the hand by turning a sharp right and left again. His running picked up, he was _so_ close.

Virgil all but threw himself onto the table, now slamming both arms down in front of Thomas to create an impassable barrier.

Thomas screeched to a halt but still managed to run into Virgil’s arm. He shook as he quickly backed away, but then froze when he realized this meant Virgil was _right_ behind him. Welp, he was sure to get punished now. 

“Geez, would you stop that?” Virgil huffed, panting slightly from the exertion. If Thomas kept running off Virgil might actually have to work out. And Virgil hated work. Not taking any chances, Virgil moved his arms closer to himself to trap Thomas in a more secure area.

Thomas backed away as the arms came closer and he braced himself to be grabbed once more. Because Thomas was sure it was to happen any second now. He still didn’t look back at Virgil’s face, scared to see any anger again.

When it seemed Thomas was done trying to run, Virgil took the opportunity to grab Thomas up. The human grunted, pushing himself off the table to stand once more. 

“You know, I was _trying_ to make things a bit more comfortable for you.” Virgil said a bit irritably, lowering his hand into the cage and letting Thomas drop onto the blanket.

When Thomas dropped onto the ground, back into the cage, he barely took notice of the blanket, or even Virgil’s words. He was still waiting for something to happen because he had tried to run. That had been so _stupid_ of him. He should have just stayed where Virgil told him and then the human wouldn’t be mad like he was now.

Thomas curled up, still bracing himself.

Virgil grabbed the roof, clicking it back into place on the cage. He then crouched down, looking at Thomas through the still open cage door. Virgil winced internally when he saw Thomas was back to curling up on himself. 

“Well?” Virgil asked with an expectant tone.

Thomas flinched before slowly looking up after a few seconds of nothing happening. “W-Well, what?” Thomas asked.

“Is it comfy?” Virgil asked. “I dunno what you’re used to, but it’s the smallest blanket I’ve got. I could probably find you a smaller…something for a blanket, but we’d have to be creative with it. Not really my thing, but it could work.”

Thomas unfurled himself and finally took notice of his surroundings. The cage floor and been entirely replaced by a blanket. A rather comfy blanket, if Thomas was being honest. Actually, it was probably the most comfortable thing he had ever sat on, other than the human’s bed. Definitely more comfortable than his makeshift bed at home.

“…Yeah.” He answered simply. “It’s…It’s nice.”

“Well, good.” Virgil gave him a small smile. “Glad my efforts are at least being appreciated after the fact.”


	4. A Deal's A Deal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Terms of agreement are made to make this less of a hostage situation.

Thomas looked down, pressing his hand down on the blanket. It was really soft. It got Thomas thinking. “Why are you wasting so much time on me?” Thomas found himself asking. It was better than bringing up why he wasn’t receiving any punishment, though. No need to remind the human of that. And really, his question was a valid one.

“…Look.” Virgil leaned forward, crossing his arms on the edge of the desk and placing his chin atop them. “I care about you, okay, Thomas? And I know you don’t see it that way. You see me as some-” Virgil struggled for a moment to think of adjectives the borrower would use. “-some big, mean human who’s just trying to ruin your life.”

Thomas blinked. “Well yeah…because you kind of have already.” Thomas winced. Should he have said that?

“Yeah yeah.” Virgil all but waved him off. “I get it. I threw a wrench in this whole gig you’ve got going. But there is no way you could have continued surviving like that forever. I mean, look at you. You’re a mess.” 

Thomas couldn’t help but look down at himself. He didn’t see anything wrong with how he was, he had always been like this after all. But, he had to admit, compared to a human he did look kind of bad. “I can survive like that just fine,” Thomas spoke, feeling brave enough to direct a small glare at the human. “I’ve been doing it since I was 12 and when I was too young, my parents were doing it.”

“Why are you all so obsessed with this life of scraps and stealth and secrecy?” Virgil gave a small exasperated laugh. “I mean yeah humans suck, but some humans suck less.” Virgil thought fondly of his own friends. “If you’re gonna live off of taking human’s things anyways, why haven’t you ever tried to go straight to the source? Partner with a human and cut out the middle man.”

Thomas looked at Virgil incredulously. “Seriously?” He waved around him at the cage he was being held in. “We were scared of this _exact_ thing happening. Being trapped, being killed! And there are no ways to judge which humans _might_ help us without either of those two things happening because humans always act differently towards us than with other humans because…” A few tears filled Thomas’ eyes and he looked down. “Because we’re smaller and apparently that makes us less equal.”

“Woah woah woah.” Virgil frowned, once again feeling unsure in the face of emotions. “That is not true. Just because you’re like- what a few inches tall?- doesn’t mean that you’re not a person too.” _A person you’ve trapped in a hamster cage._ Virgil winced. 

“I know I’m not being the best ambassador for humanity with this thing.” Virgil gave a glare at one of the cage walls. “And you know what? Okay, maybe you’re right. Locking a tiny person up is kind of… unfair. But I only brought it out because you keep trying to run off.”

“And there’s a _reason_ I keep trying to run. See, you wouldn’t keep another _human_ locked up, would you?” Thomas actually thought he was getting somewhere. Maybe, if they kept talking and things continued to go in this direction, _maybe_ this could even end in Virgil letting him go.

“Well, that’s where things are different.” Virgil tried again to explain his side of things. “You’re _not_ another human. And that’s perfectly fine, you’re still a person of course, but you’re not acting like a member of society or whatever. I would help another human reform, turn their life around, and I want to do the same to help you. Except the difference is, a human would accept the assistance instead of trying to get away constantly.”

Thomas’ shoulders slumped. So much for being let go. “Why won’t you just listen to me?” He was sure Virgil would listen to another human, at least more than he was listening to him.

“I’m trying to, Thomas.” Virgil insisted. “That’s why I was talking about compromising. I mean, I get it, you’re already pissed at me for keeping you here. But I want to at least make you less pissed at me by figuring out what you think is best. Apart from the whole leaving thing. Like the cage, I get it, it sucks. We can find something better together tomorrow.”

“So…you just plan on me staying with you…forever?” Surely Virgil wouldn’t deal with Thomas for that long. Which meant, eventually, either Virgil would let him go…or…

Thomas shook his head, not wanting to think about it.

“Uh, forever’s a long time.” Virgil hadn’t actually given it much thought. He was mostly trying to take this one mistake at a time. “I dunno what’ll happen to us down the road, heck I don’t even know my major.” The further Virgil thought about it, the more Virgil was unsure. What would Virgil do with Thomas over break, especially if Thomas was still adamant about leaving? Virgil winced at the thought of Thomas still being that torn up about this in months.

“How about we aim for the semester?” Virgil suggested. “And then we’ll go from there.”

Thomas looked up with a sad frown. “…I don’t really have a choice, do I?” He felt like curling in on himself again.

“Well, I want you to have _some_ choice in it.” Virgil pressed on, leaning forwards slightly. He was almost desperate to keep Thomas from shutting him out again. “I don’t want you to sulk through this semester all depressed. Come on, really, what’s a reasonable amount of time for you to stick around here? From a borrower perspective.”

Thomas forced himself not to wince as Virgil used the term for his kind again. He thought for a moment, he had to think of _something_ to say. “…A week.” Even that seemed too long by his standards, but it was better than the entire semester. Which Thomas knew to be months long. And he figured Virgil wouldn’t take one day as an answer.

“A week.” Virgil thought about it. He could work with a week. And certainly, if it made Thomas happier, Virgil was more than willing to agree.

“Alright, a week it is.” Virgil gave a small nod, slowly sticking out his index finger towards Thomas in lieu of a handshake.

Thomas flinched back as Virgil’s hand came towards him, scared to be grabbed again. But when he saw that Virgil was simply holding his finger out for a handshake, Thomas relaxed a bit. After some hesitation, Thomas grabbed Virgil’s finger and shook it. 

While it still might not be ideal and might not end how he wanted it to, it was still his best bet at freedom. So he would just have to go along with it for now and keep an eye out on any and all escape opportunities. 

Virgil looked down, feeling the slight movement of his own finger as the borrower shook it. _That’s so weird_. Trying not to make it even weirder by lingering, Virgil pulled his hand back out of the cage. 

“Well, now that that’s settled, I think it’s best we actually get to bed,” Virgil suggested.

Thomas nodded, yawning as if on cue. He was exhausted. But his mind was still racing with everything that had happened. Very weird state to be in. He hoped he would at least be able to get a little bit of sleep tonight. He had a feeling he would need it for tomorrow.

Virgil snorted slightly at the tiny yawn. “G’night, Thomas.” Virgil closed the cage door, feeling slightly guilty about it as he climbed into his own bed and turned off the light.

Thomas watched the cage door close with sad eyes but knew there was nothing he could do about it. “…Goodnight.” He called back, after a moment of hesitation. He took off his bag and laid it down off to the side, before laying down himself. He curled up onto the blanket and closed his eyes.

To his surprise, he fell asleep right away.


	5. Obligatory Coffee Scene

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Why do all of these perspective stories always have a trying coffee scene? We don't even like coffee.

Thomas woke up to light shining through and hitting him in the eyes. He groaned and tried to turn away from the light, but it was too late, he was already too awake to go back to sleep. So, he sat up, taking in his surroundings, **  
**

He was still in the cage, still with Virgil. Speaking of, the human was still asleep in bed. Thomas wasn’t about to call out to the human, so he decided to grab his bag and rummage through it. Organize everything to pass the time.

Feeling hungry, Thomas tore off a piece of his noodle and started to eat it. It was definitely cold at this point, which gave it a different taste, but it wasn’t bad.

Eventually, a loud beeping sound began to go off from Virgil’s nightstand. He groaned, reaching over and shutting off the alarm. 

Slowly Virgil sat up in bed, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. He blinked sleepily, glazed eyes falling onto the cage sitting atop his desk.

“…oh. Right.” Virgil yawned, stretching his arms as he got out of bed to greet the tiny still sitting in his old hamster cage. “Morning.”

Thomas finished his bite before replying. “Good morning.” He had decided that being polite and going along with Virgil for the week would help him better at the end of the week. Maybe Virgil would listen to him about still wanting to go home.

Virgil raised an eyebrow when he noticed Thomas munching on a cold ramen noodle. He wanted to offer Thomas some _actual_ breakfast, but…well, all Virgil had to offer was just more ramen. He really needed to go shopping. 

“Do you drink coffee?” Virgil asked, bending down to unlatch the cage door.

Thomas raised an eyebrow. “Coffee?” The name was familiar, but Thomas couldn’t picture it.

“Sacred bean juice?” Virgil joked. “Lifeblood of college students?”

Thomas blinked. “…What?”

“It’s a drink.” Virgil chuckled tiredly. “C’mon, I’ll go make some and you can try it.” He set his palm down on the desk.

Thomas looked down at the hand, knowing what Virgil was asking of him, but wondering if he could actually do it. He was surprised Virgil hadn’t just grabbed him. Maybe they were finally done with that at the very least.

Thomas took in a deep breath and carefully walked forward. He stopped just short of climbing on, before doing so in a quick motion. He settled down in Virgil’s palm.

He couldn’t believe he had just stepped into a human’s hand willingly. He really was stupid.

Virgil lifted his hand slowly, trying not to internally panic too much at the thought that there was someone’s life in his hands and _oh god don’t drop him-_

“There, easy.” Virgil, contrary to his internal attitude, maintained a carefree exterior as he deposited Thomas on the counter before focusing on starting the coffee pot.

Thomas stepped a bit closer as he watched Virgil making the coffee. He suddenly recognized it. “Oh! _That’s_ what that’s called? I always saw you drinking it, but I never knew what it was.” He suddenly covered his mouth, realizing what he had said. The last thing he had wanted was to bring all that back up again. He didn’t wanna make Virgil mad.

Instead of being mad, Virgil just snorted. It was kind of amusing to be thought of as ‘the guy who keeps drinking coffee’. 

“It’s basically an energy drink,” Virgil explained, pouring some into a mug of his own. “It helps keep me awake and…hang on.” Virgil glanced between the mug and Thomas, realizing they were almost the same height. He frowned, bringing a hand to his chin. “Okay, I may not have thought this through.”

Thomas sighed in relief when Virgil wasn’t mad. He chuckled a little at that. “Don’t worry, I have a solution.” He rummaged through his bag before coming up with a bit of tinfoil. He started to mold it, matching what Virgil’s mugs looked like. Before long, he had a miniature foil version. “Ta-da!” He exclaimed, holding it up for Virgil to see.

Virgil leaned in, squinting to see what Thomas had made. “…how’d you do that?” Virgil said incredulously, impressed.

Thomas shrugged, pulling the mug back to him. “Just molded some tinfoil, no big deal really,” Thomas said, laughing a bit.

“No big deal?” Virgil set his own mug down on the counter. “I certainly couldn’t do that. But go ahead, help yourself.”

Thomas blushed, before coughing to cover it up and heading towards the mug. He had to go on his tippy toes to reach, but he managed to scoop himself a cup. Backing away a bit so he wasn’t in the way of Virgil grabbing his mug back, he took a careful sip.

…And immediately spit it back out. That was… _gross_. And he usually wasn’t picky. “It’s…um…” Thomas was having trouble finding the right words. He didn’t want to insult Virgil’s favorite drink after all.

“Oh, Oops.” Virgil’s smirk made it clear that was no mistake. He had just wanted to see Thomas’ reaction. “I forgot to add the sweeteners.” Virgil pulled out the coffee creamer- one of the few necessities still stocked in his fridge- and mixed it into his mug to turn the dark liquid a milky brown.

Thomas glared at Virgil before rolling his eyes and dumping the pure black coffee back into the mug and taking another cupful. He took another sip, much more hesitant this time. However, he was pleasantly surprised to find it tasted a lot better. He could still taste an underline of bitterness, but all the sweeteners helped to balance it out.

“That is a _lot_ better,” Thomas admitted, taking another sip.

“Yeah, it’s better this way.” Virgil took his own mug back. “Just don’t go telling everyone I don’t drink it black. I can’t have you exposing all of my emo secrets.”

Thomas raised an eyebrow, taking another sip. “Who would I even tell?” It wasn’t like he knew anyone else. There weren’t any other borrowers in this building and he was dead set on not talking to any more humans.

“Hmm, good point.” Virgil began taking a large swig of his own drink, already feeling more awake as the hot liquid all but burned his throat. 

Thomas finished his cup, looking at the empty foil left in its place. “So uh…what’s on the agenda for today?” Thomas asked.

“Well, unfortunately, I’ve got class soon.” Virgil gave a glare at the clock as if it was the clock’s fault Virgil’s class schedule was so early. “And I’ve already skipped twice this week so I’ve got to go, but after I was thinking we can start figuring out a more…ideal living situation.”

“Um…yeah, that sounds…good.” Anything was better than that cage, at the very least. He put his empty foil back in his bag.

“…Do you want to go to class with me?” Virgil decided to put out the offer, despite the fact he thought it was a horrible idea. After all, he had nowhere to put Thomas, and there would be loads of idiots surrounding them on all sides constantly.

“No!” Thomas shouted, before wincing. “I mean, um, no thanks. I’ll just…stay here.” He did _not_ want to go somewhere where there were hundreds of humans, nuh-uh, no thanks.

“Yeah, no problem.” Virgil nodded quickly. “I didn’t think it was a good idea, but I thought I’d offer. Letting you choose and all.”

Virgil gave an awkward cough, looking back at the bedroom door. “Of course, that means more time in…uh…”

Thomas deflated. “Right.” It beat going to Virgil’s school though, at the very least. “That’s…fine.” Not really, but Virgil already knew how he felt about it.

“I’m sorry.” Virgil winced in sympathy. He really wished there was another way. “But I promise, as soon as I get home we’ll get rid of it.” He set his palm down on the counter, once again waiting for Thomas.

Thomas only nodded, walking onto Virgil’s palm, a little less hesitant than before. He hoped whatever new accommodation they came up with was better than the old hamster cage.

Virgil set down his coffee mug so that he could use both hands to keep Thomas safe as he walked back to the bedroom. He set his hands down on the desk, making sure the cage door was still open.

Thomas stepped off and looked back up at Virgil before sighing and walking into the cage. Again, better not to fight against it for a better chance at being let go in a week.

“…I’ll be back soon,” Virgil promised, feeling bad for the little guy. “Just a few hours, tops.”

Thomas just nodded.

Virgil sighed, closing the cage door. He gathered up his backpack, stuffing the last of his notes into the bag. With one last pitying look thrown Thomas’ way, Virgil headed to class.

Thomas slumped against the back of the cage, looking up. There really was nothing for him to do except wait…and think. 


	6. Out of the Frying Pan, Into the Fryer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oh hi, Roman!

“Virgil?” Roman knocked on his best friend’s door, waiting for a response. “Virgil if you don’t answer I suppose I’ll be forced to steal your Tim Burton posters as payment for your lack of hospitality.”

Of course, Roman was well aware that Virgil was currently in class. He just said that so he would have a reason to ‘borrow’ more of Virgil’s iconic Disney merch for the week as he let himself into Virgil’s apartment.

This was not an unexpected event, though it slipped Virgil’s mind this morning. Often Roman would come over unannounced. So often, in fact, that Roman had his own apartment key. 

“Well, I suppose I just _have_ to take them now.” Roman sighed dramatically to the empty apartment, gleefully heading into Virgil’s bedroom. 

Thomas suddenly stiffened at the sound of a familiar voice calling out into the apartment. But not the familiar voice he was okay with, oh no. This was the human who lived on the fifth floor. _Roman_. 

Thomas jumped to his feet, looking for somewhere to hide but quickly realized there wasn’t any. He was trapped inside the cage and the cage was open and empty for all to see. Well, empty save for himself of course.

He could hear Roman coming towards the bedroom and so Thomas thought fast. He curled himself up into a tiny ball in the far corner and just _prayed_ Roman would look over him. It was the only thing he could do.

Roman entered Virgil’s room, humming a tune to himself as he gathered the posters from the closet. As Roman was just about to leave, however, he spotted something out of the ordinary.

“Helloooooo, what’s this?” Roman came over to inspect the cage further. Had Virgil gotten another hamster and not told him? But…why was a blanket stuffed inside? Roman frowned, trying to peer through the bars for any source of life. Upon the first glance, Roman didn’t spot anything, but on the second glance…Roman gasped, posters falling out of his arms in surprise.

No, no, no, no, no, _no_ , not again! He didn’t move from his ball, but he could hear from the gasp that Roman had realized he was in there. 

…This wasn’t going to be fun.

Roman quickly took the roof off the structure, removing it so he could get a better look. Noticing the creature was still curled up in a ball, Roman wasted no time in scooping it out into his palms.

“Ah!” Thomas yelped, as he was scooped up. He was unfurled from his tight ball and now lying down on Roman’s hand. Thomas tentatively looked up at the human, a look of fear on his face.

“Woah.” Roman gazed in awe down at the tiny…thing. Tiny person? Why on _Earth_ was Virgil keeping a tiny person locked up in a cage inside his bedroom? “Who are you?” 

Thomas gulped. Now he had another choice to make, essentially the same choice as before. Should he speak to this human? He already had a deal going on with Virgil, so his best bet would be to stay with him…unless Roman was willing to let him go. But Thomas had the sneaky suspicion that would not be the case.

“I’m…Thomas.” He decided to answer. 

“Thomas, it’s…certainly interesting to meet your acquaintance.” Roman paused, looking at the setup before him. “My name is Roman. Now would you kindly explain… _why_ exactly I find you locked in a…hamster cage in my best friend’s apartment?”

Thomas bit his lip. “Um…he…thinks he’s helping me?” Thomas answered. “He said it was temporary, though I’m not sure what the alternatives are,” Thomas admitted. Obviously, Virgil would want to keep him trapped still. So whatever Thomas decided would just be some glorified cage.

“Hmm.” Roman raised an eyebrow. “Well, he certainly seems to be doing a poor job of it.” Roman began walking away from the desk, posters forgotten.

“I’ll say,” Thomas muttered, agreeing with Roman completely. He wobbled a little as he realized Roman was moving. “Uh…?”

“Clearly someone else would be far more suited to assisting you,” Roman said, eyes practically shining as he clearly has designated himself for that role. “I, of course, would be more than up to the task!” Roman all but dashed out of Virgil’s apartment, heading up to his own room on the 5th floor.

Thomas yelped as Roman basically took off running out of Virgil’s apartment. Oh no, this wasn’t good _at all_. “A-Actually, you would help me a lot by um…letting me go?” Thomas asked, deciding to give that a chance.

“Yes, of course, just a moment.” Roman barely paid him attention, coming into his own apartment. “Ah, home sweet home.” With a blissful sigh, Roman headed into the bedroom.

“Aaaaand…there!” Roman let Thomas go onto the bed.

Thomas looked around at his new surroundings, now on top of Roman’s bed. With Roman looming over him. He shivered. “Uh, thanks, but I actually meant, like, letting me _go_ , go. As in, back to my own home and…yeah.” Thomas fidgeted with his sleeves. He hated not knowing how Roman was going to react. At least with Virgil, he could guess how he would react to some things.

“Oh, come on.” Roman sat down on the ground, leaning forwards on his bed to get a good look at Thomas. “Surely you don’t want to go back to _Virgil_ so soon. The guy can be an absolute bore.” Roman made a fake yawning motion to demonstrate.

“Uh, no actually, I meant my-I meant my _real_ home. In-In um…” He debated for a hot second if he should reveal that or not, before deciding it might help him more if he did. “In the walls.”

“In the _walls_?” Roman reeled back as if repelled by the notion. “How ghastly! Why, even Cinderella’s mice were not fully confined to such a fate.”

Thomas winced. “It’s uh…really not _that_ bad.” He defended.

“Oh, how modest of you.” Roman rustled Thomas’ hair. Truly if Thomas were bigger he would pinch his cheek. “But Thomas, worry no longer. I am certain I can construct a suitable abode fit for a prince of your stature.”

Thomas flinched away from the touch, gasping in fright. He had not been expecting the human to do that. “B-But…”

“Oh, I’m sure I have some spare materials lying about in my workspace.” Roman scooped Thomas up once more, heading over to his desk that was a mess of half-finished ideas and various crafting scraps.

Thomas yelped as he was taken by surprise yet _again_ by Roman scooping him up. He was much more grabby than Virgil that was for sure. At least Virgil offered his hand to him near the end there.

Okay, so Roman wasn’t going to let him go. Which meant his best bet was to still get back to Virgil somehow. “Uh…W-Won’t Virgil be mad once he notices I’m not there?” 

Roman ignored the question for a moment in favor of placing Thomas on the desk near his own arm. Roman cleared off a space in front of himself, pulling out a clean sheet of paper and some pens. 

“What Virgil doesn’t know won’t hurt him,” Roman answered finally. “Besides, he’s not meant to be back until 3. That leaves me plenty of time. He said he was looking for a new cage, and you’re clearly in need of a more ideal living space. It’s a win-win!”

This was literally the last thing he wanted, being discovered by another human. At least Roman was planning on giving him back to Virgil…he hoped. Either way, Thomas was gonna be on the lookout for a chance to escape. Since he was no longer confined it would definitely be easier to. Especially if Roman became too focused on whatever he was doing. So Thomas stood there and waited.

“Now, where should we start?” Roman asked, turning to Thomas.

“Um,” Thomas had no idea. He wasn’t really looking forward to planning out his own prison. But he had to think of something if he wanted to distract Roman enough to try and get away. “We can start with…shape?” Thomas shrugged.

“…shape,” Roman repeated, one eyebrow raised.

Thomas bit his lip. Was that the wrong thing to say? “Uh…yeah? Like the-like the shape of the cage you’re designing?”

“It’s not a _cage_.” Roman insisted, finishing his initial sketch to turn it around and show Thomas. “It’s a _castle_.” He grinned down at the little guy, clearly eager for his response.

Thomas’ eyes widened. “Whoa.” The design Roman had created was extravagant, to say the least. And he had done so in such little time, Thomas couldn’t even think _to_ escape. But the design was very much like out of a fairytale castle.

“Now, this is only a rough sketch, of course.” Roman turned his drawing back towards himself, frowning down at it. “And we’ll have to find the necessary materials, though I have some supplies here and I’m sure I could get more from the prop room. I’m just not sure what it’s missing…obviously bedroom, dining room, drawbridge, tower….”

Thomas hummed, watching as Roman continued to mutter to himself as he looked down at the page. Biting his lip, he wondered if now would be a good time to try and leave. Was Roman distracted enough? He took a few steps back to start off, watching Roman warily.

“Is one zipline enough?” Roman asked aloud, not looking up from his page.

Thomas blinked. “Uh, yeah.” What the heck was Roman designing? He couldn’t seriously think he would be able to build all of that. Thomas had to admit it would be a nice place to live in but that wouldn’t make him any less trapped. Despite what Roman said, it was still a cage.

Roman seemed distracted enough though, so Thomas decided to take his chance. He didn’t immediately run but started walking towards the edge. Thankfully, Roman had a lamp on his desk as well, which he could use the cord to get down with.

“Oh, but two would look so perfect…” Roman sighed, putting his chin in his hand as he pondered it. “I’m gonna put two,” Roman said decidedly, adding to his sketch.

As Thomas made it to the cord, he couldn’t believe it. He might actually make it out of there. With a smile, Thomas gripped the cord and quickly started to shimmy down it.

“Ooh, but I could do four!” Roman gasped. “One for each of the corners! Thomas, what do you think?” Roman turned to look at the tiny, only now to realize he wasn’t there. Roman blinked. “…Thomas?”


	7. That was Easy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Turns out Roman is not the sharpest knife in the drawer, but we been knew that.

Thomas tensed and started climbing down faster. He wished the cord wasn’t so thick, so he could get down easier, but he had to make do with what he had. He reached the floor, looking around and trying to remember where his exit was in Roman’s room. He _did_ have an exit in here, right?

“Thomas, where’d you go?” Roman stood up, pushing his various craft supplies buckets to the side to check if Thomas was hiding behind them. A few markers fell out the side, clattering to the ground below as Roman continued his search.

Thomas yelped as a few markers almost hit him, before slamming a hand over his mouth. Crap, he needed to hurry! He picked a direction and started to run.

At the sound of the yelp, Roman’s head whipped around to spot Thomas darting across his bedroom. “Hey!” Roman was quick to run after him, easily overtaking the tiny person.

“Ah!” Thomas yelled as he was once again caught up in a human’s grasp. He struggled against it. He had been so close.

“Thomas, geez.” Roman used two hands to keep his hold on Thomas as he knelt on the bedroom floor. “What’s gotten into you? What happened?”

Thomas was done trying to be subtle at this point. “Let me go!” He kept struggling, even though he knew it was useless.

“O-okay!” Since his hands weren’t that far off the ground, Roman did as Thomas asked and let the borrower fall.

Thomas yelled and landed on the ground with an ‘oof.’ He groaned as he pushed his head up with his arms. “That…isn’t what I meant…ow.” That was definitely going to leave a bruise.

“Oh my gosh, Thomas are you alright?” Roman quickly scooped him up. “My sincerest apologies, I- I wasn’t thinking…”

Thomas groaned again as he was picked up. He would struggle but he was much too tired, and sore, to do so again. “ _Please_ just let me go home.” Thomas practically begged.

“Thomas, you’re injured!” Roman gasped, noticing how limp Thomas now lay in his palms when before he was more squirmy than a snake.

“I-I’m fine.” Thomas half-lied. “It just, uh, startled me.” He bit his lip as he shifted a little in the grip. An ache of pain went through him, but he ignored it.

“Are you certain?” Roman frowned, slowly getting to his feet. “I can get you an ice pack or something.”

“No, no, I’m fine, really.” Thomas shifted again, wanting out of the grip, but still not able to struggle. “Can you…put me down?” He doubted he was getting home anytime soon.

“Alright.” Roman sighed, moving to set Thomas on the desk. He paused, hands a few inches above the desk. “…hang on a moment. How did you end up on the floor, anyway?”

Thomas tensed. “I, uh…” He trailed off, not knowing what to say. If he said he was trying to escape, Roman would probably be mad at him. “I…wanted to go for a walk?”

“A walk.” Roman pursed his lips. “A walk which turned into teleporting to the ground and _sprinting_ across the floor?”

“…Yes?” Thomas said, noticing Roman still hadn’t put him down. 

Roman didn’t quite believe Thomas, and because of this he didn’t feel comfortable setting Thomas back down. Sure, he had gotten lucky once, but if Thomas tried a leap to the floor again he would hurt himself.

“In that case, a walk we shall have.” Roman pulled Thomas back towards his chest, holding him in one hand and grabbing his book bag in the other.

“Wait, what?” He thought Roman was gonna put him down, not hold him closer! And now Roman was grabbing his bag and oh, this wasn’t good. “No!” Finding his second wind, Thomas resumed struggling within the grip.

“Thomas, you _just_ asked for this.” Roman reminded him, giving Thomas a pointed look. He put his bag over his shoulder, heading into the living room. A walk did sound lovely, it would help Roman clear his head. He felt so lost, like everything he was doing today was just…wrong.

“Well, I-I kinda wanted to walk on my own.” Honestly, being carried by Roman was not a walk.

“Then I suppose we’ll just have to go on a walk on our own, together.” Roman seemed set in his ways, heading out of his apartment. 

As Roman left the apartment, Thomas was very aware that he was in Roman’s hands, _out in the open_. “Roman!” He whisper yelled. “No one can see me!”

Roman paused, looking down at Thomas in his hands. “What? How come?”

“B-Because! I just, I _have_ to be kept a secret. Who knows what someone would do if they saw me!” He said, hoping Roman would understand and at least hide him already. The last thing he needed was _everyone_ finding out about him.

“Alright!” Roman relented, still not understanding fully but understanding enough to get that Thomas was stressed over this. He looked around, spotting the chest pocket on his shirt before lowering Thomas inside it. “There, happy?”

Thomas suddenly felt himself surrounded by fabric and a beating rhythm off to his side. He quickly realized it was Roman’s heart. “Um, yeah?” He wasn’t happy by any means, but at the very least he was out of sight. Now if only he could escape and get home…

With Thomas carefully stowed away, Roman began walking. He went down the five flights of stairs, out across the street to walk along the forest path next to the apartment.

Thomas hated this. He had barely ever been outside before, but now here he was outside with a human of all things. Where was Roman even taking him? Was he mad? Thomas sunk lower into the pocket.

Roman walked further along the forest line, straddling the path between city and nature. As he reached a spot with few buildings, Roman took the opportunity to rest under a tree. Since no prying eyes were about, Roman took Thomas back out of his pocket.

Thomas yelped and squirmed as Roman took him in his grasp once again. As he was taken out of the pocket, he looked around frantically. Only calming down a bit when he saw no one else around. “Where-where are we?”

“Oh, just out in the forest.” Roman waved his hand. “I figured some fresh air would do us both some good, start us off on a new leaf, if you will.” Roman watched for a moment as a leaf fluttered to the ground. “You know…I do have a question.” He looked back at Thomas. “What _are_ you, Thomas?”

Thomas tensed, not this question again. Virgil already knew due to a slip up, he couldn’t tell Roman intentionally. “I…can’t say.” Thomas decided to say, bracing himself afterwards for the human’s anger.

“You can’t? Why not?” Roman’s eyes widened, leaning in to whisper. “Is it a fae secret?”

“N-No.” Thomas said, leaning away as best he could from Roman. “I’m not a…whatever you just said. I just can’t say.” Fae? What even was that?

“Does Virgil know?” Roman asked. He hated the idea of his best friend knowing something he didn’t. “And how did you meet Virgil, anyways?”

“He…doesn’t.” Thomas decided to lie last second. Maybe Roman would drop it if he though Virgil didn’t know either. “And I sort of…fell on him?” Thomas rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

“Is that a habit of yours, then?” Roman chuckled, thinking back to Thomas falling off the desk. “Falling off of things?”

“Not…usually.” Thomas said. He wished he had been more careful last night. Then he wouldn’t be _in_ this situation.

“So what are some of your habits?” Roman adjusted himself slightly. “What do you do, Thomas?”

Thomas was not about to tell Roman he watched/took from him and all his friends. He figured that would go down as well as it had gone with Virgil and he _really_ didn’t need an angry human on him again. “I just…hang out. In the walls. I don’t do much.” He shrugged.

“C’mon, you must do _something_.” Roman insisted, nudging Thomas in the shoulder.

Thomas flinched away from the contact, heart beating fast. “Really, I don’t do much. It’s kind of boring, actually.” Thomas faked a chuckle, though he’s afraid it came off more as nervous.

“What, no classes, no job, no…?” Roman paused. “No classes.” Roman pulled out his phone, checking the time. “My classes! My class, I’m late!” Roman groaned, putting the phone back. “Ugh, we’ve gotta go.” He stood up, grabbing his bag.

“W-What? Wait!” He got a bit dizzy at how fast Roman stood up, groaning with a slight wince.

“Sorry Thomas, looks like we’re speed walking to class.” Roman explained, moving Thomas towards his pocket.

“No!” Thomas struggled once again, not wanting to go back in the chest pocket. Especially with the knowledge that Roman was going to class. He didn’t want to take the chance of anyone noticing him.

“Thomas, stop struggling!” Roman tried to maneuver the squirming boy into his pocket, earning a kick to the fingers before he succeeded.

“Let me out! I don’t want to be in here!” He was suddenly reminded of his time with Virgil, yelling much the same thing at him about the cage.

“Stop yelling.” Roman stage whispered, putting the strap of his bag over his shoulder. “You’ll call attention to us.” He began walking back towards town, heading to the University as fast as he could walk. 

“Roman!” Thomas went back to whispering. He pounded on Roman’s chest, hoping that would work.

Roman cringed, feeling Thomas moving around in his pocket. It almost felt as though a giant neon sign were pointing at his chest, showing Thomas’ location to the world. Roman ducked into an empty classroom, pulling out Thomas.

“Okay, you have got to stop moving around so much.” Roman lectured. “Someone’s gonna see you.”

“Then take me out of your pocket. _Please_.” Thomas said, almost begging. He felt like he was doing that a lot today. Why couldn’t humans just _listen_ to him.

Roman bit his lip, looking around for a solution. There was a pile of textbooks in the corner, seemingly abandoned. 

“Alright, I’ll leave you here until the end of class.” Roman said quietly, stacking the books to form a little shelter that wasn’t visible from the door. “Now stay quiet.” With one last look around, Roman dashed out of the room and down to his own class. Just in time to be marked tardy.


	8. Third Human's the Charm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Whoops, Thomas didn't get really far before being found by another bean. How dare.

Thomas blinked, not believing his luck. Roman had just…left him alone. Thomas grinned. Now was his chance. He may be far away from his home, but at least he wouldn’t have to deal with anymore humans. He would take a long trek if it meant no humans any day.

Thomas moved past the books and towards the door. He looked underneath, into the hallway, not seeing anyone. He then shimmied underneath, thankful he was able to fit under. He looked up and down the hall before moving the way Roman had come in. Sticking close to the wall and keeping a watchful eye for any humans.

He didn’t think he would have to worry though. Since they were all in class at this point.

Of course, one student was not in class.

Logan Sanders was still wandering the halls, having just stayed late to discuss the probabilities of the multiverse theory with his physics professor. After a while, the professor had excused himself. 

Now, Logan was faced with an even greater anomaly than the multiverse theory. He paused, watching the creature for a moment with a tilted head. He was behind it, and therefore hadn’t been spotted, but this was the most curious thing Logan had ever seen. It was the size of a mouse yet looked exactly as though a human being had been shrunken down!

“Incredible.” Logan quickly began to walk closer, eyes locked onto it.

Thomas froze, eye wide as he caught the voice. Slowly, he turned his head, looking up and seeing another human watching him. _Crap, not again!_

Quickly turning back around, Thomas booked it towards the front exit.

Seeing the creature speed up, Logan quickened his pace. He almost dove to the floor, wrapping his hands around it. “Gotcha!”

“Ah!” Thomas yelled. _Again_. He couldn’t believe he had been caught by three humans in less than 24 hours. He really was a terrible borrower. He struggled against the grip, ignoring how his bruises from earlier flared up.

“Extraordinary.” Logan’s eyes almost sparkled, pulling the tiny person up to look at him more closely. Logan sat back on his heels, holding it higher. “What- who are you?”

Thomas froze in his struggling, realizing he recognized that voice. He looked up into a pair of eyes framed with glasses. “Logan?” He said before he could stop himself. He immediately closed his mouth. Crap, what had he just done? But, another question, why was he being caught by all the residents of the _same_ building.

Logan blinked. “How do you know my name?” Logan whispered, puzzled. What sort of creature was this? Logan looked down at himself but spotted no name tag that could have offered the miniature a clue.

“Uh…” Thomas wasn’t sure how to answer that without Logan getting mad at him. “Lucky guess?” He chuckled nervously.

Logan frowned, knowing for sure ‘luck’ had nothing to do with it. “Alright, so what is your name, then?” Logan asked, pushing himself off the ground to continue walking. After all, the halls were hardly a private place to hold a conversation.

At least that was something Thomas was okay with giving out, more or less. “Thomas.” The borrower then looked around as they started to move. “Um, w-where are you taking me?”

“Home.” Logan answered, peeking out the door to check for anyone around. “Well, first my car. Then home. It’s not exactly the safest place for you here.”

Thomas could agree with that. But it also wasn’t safe to be with a human either. Thomas continued to squirm in the grip, wincing when he rubbed at his bruise wrong.

“Shh, it’s alright.” Logan tried to readjust his hands so that Thomas was more comfortable, making a quick dash to his car. Panting slightly from the exertion, Logan climbed into the driver’s seat and re-evaluated Thomas. “Are you alright?”

“Um…yeah.” He lied. He shifted again, unable to keep from wincing as his bruised flared up once again. Wow, that fall had really gotten him. And also all the tight grips. He was going to be bruised for weeks.

“Are you…hurt?” Logan moved Thomas closer, gently prodding him in the side.

Thomas flinched, releasing a hiss of pain.

“Sorry!” Logan quickly removed his finger, lessening his grip on Thomas so that he lay in an open palm. “You look…quite injured…” Logan’s eyes widened. “Is that because of me?”

Thomas was thankful to be out of the grip but couldn’t help but look up at the human in slight confusion. It was weird having _three_ humans seemingly caring about him. He fought with himself over what to say. “Uh, no, no. This was from, ah…earlier.”

“…I see.” Now aware of Thomas’ injuries, Logan was gentle as he set Thomas down to rest inside the cup holder. There the small man would hopefully be the least jostled. “May I ask what happened?”

Thomas wondered how much he should tell Logan. Because he knew Logan knew who Roman and Virgil were, they were best friends after all. And he didn’t want to end up in their hands again, especially Roman’s. And maybe Logan would actually let him go? Well, maybe not, but maybe he could escape from him better.

“A…Another human found me and…well…” Thomas shrugged. He was glad to be out of Logan’s hands but the angle was less than ideal now.

Logan felt his blood boil slightly at the indication of another person treating Thomas poorly.

“Who was it?” Logan asked, turning the key in his ignition. “What did they do?”

“I’m not sure.” Thomas lied, wincing as he did so. “But they uh, grabbed me too rough and well…dropped me.”

“What? Why?” Logan fought to stay focused on the road instead of glancing down at Thomas.

“I asked to be let go and he panicked and dropped me.” Thomas said with a shrug. He rubbed at his sides.

“What kind of an idiot would do that?” Logan murmured, half to himself.

Thomas just shrugged, keeping his mouth shut this time. He didn’t want to say anymore and have Logan figure out who it had been.

It was only a few minutes before they reached the parking structure. Logan turned off the car, carefully picking up Thomas and peering out his window to check if the coast was clear.

Thomas squirmed in the grip once again but made himself still as he realized Logan was about to go outside. He tried to sink further into the hand in order to remain hidden. “L-Logan, _please_ don’t let me be seen.”

“I won’t.” Logan assured Thomas, giving him a brief smile. Noticing that no one else was around, Logan got out of the vehicle and began briskly walking up and into his building. Logan’s hands were kept cupped around Thomas to hide the tiny from any passersby that Logan might have neglected to spot.

Thomas shook, hating being out in the open like he was but at least Logan understood to keep him hidden. And at least now he didn’t have to worry about getting back home.

Thankfully, Logan ran into no one on his way up to the fourth floor. He leaned against his apartment door briefly, letting out a sigh of relief. Slowly, Logan uncupped his hands.

“How are you doing?” Logan asked, eyes glancing over Thomas’ form as he began to walk down the hall, grabbing a pillow in his spare hand as he passed the couch.

“Um…fine.” Thomas said, only half lying that time. He still didn’t know what Logan was going to do.

Logan entered the kitchen, setting the pillow down on the counter. He placed Thomas in the center before grabbing a small plastic ice cube and wrapping it in a washcloth.

“Here.” Logan held it out to Thomas. “Hold this to your injuries, it should help.”

Thomas hesitated before taking it and basically hugging it in order for it to reach his sides, stomach and chest. He shivered at the cold but relaxed into it. “Th-Thanks.”

“Are you bleeding anywhere?” Logan asked, already pulling out the first aid kit from the top shelf. “I have bandages.”

Thomas shook his head. “No, I’m alright. It’s just bruises.” Thankfully.

“Okay.” Logan gave a small sigh of relief. He hadn’t been looking forward to trying to mend any tiny broken bones. Now Logan looked around for something to use as a cup. Spotting a water bottle. Logan removed the cap and splashed some water into it. Careful not to spill all the contents onto Thomas, Logan held this out for Thomas to take.

Thomas looked from the cap to Logan before taking it. He adjusted the ice cube and his grip, before taking a sip. He sighed in relief as the cool water ran down his throat. He set it down once he had had enough and then looked up at Logan. He bit his lip. “Um, Logan?”

“Thomas, do you want strawberries or carrots?” Logan asked, now busy searching through the fridge.

Thomas blinked. “Strawberries would be great, but, Logan?” Thomas tried again.

“Wait, do you have any dietary restrictions?” Logan frowned in thought, reappearing with an armful of strawberries. He began to cut these into manageable pieces.

“No.” Thomas bit his lip, not liking how Logan was ignoring him. He just wanted to ask a simple question. “But Logan, can I ask you something?”

“Yes, what is it?” Finally Logan turned his attention to Thomas’ words, handing Thomas a strawberry chunk.

Thomas took the strawberry and was grateful that Logan was finally paying attention to him. “What’s…going to happen now?”

Logan frowned. “I’m not sure I understand.” 

“I mean, like…are you going to let me go?” Thomas said, just getting the question out there and over with. He braced himself for whatever reaction Logan would have.

“Let you go where?” Logan glanced around his apartment.

“Um…home? My home, that is.” Thomas explained, trying not to get his hopes up. Things were not looking good so far.

“It’s not exactly ideal to move you in this state.” Logan advised, not wanting to drive back to the school with an injured Thomas. Since Logan had discovered Thomas in the hall, it was only logical the little lived in that vicinity. “You should rest and recuperate.”

“But…you _will_ let me go? Eventually?” Thomas asked, shoulders tense.

“I will take the course of action most beneficial to your health.” Logan promised. Whether that was releasing Thomas back into the world, it was hard to say.

Thomas deflated. Of course. Why did every human he meet think they knew what was best for him? Guess that meant he had to try and escape the old fashioned way. 

“Now eat up.” Logan instructed, handing Thomas another strawberry. “Keeping your energy levels high is essential to a steady recovery process.”

Thomas sighed but took the offered strawberry, taking a bite. The only good thing about all of this was that he was eating more than he had ever had.


	9. Here we go again!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Logan may be smart but a jailer he is not. Now it's time to meet our final human!

Virgil basically rushed into his apartment, eager to get back to earning Thomas’ trust. Virgil steadied his breathing, trying to look cool and collected despite the fact he had sprinted into the building. 

“Hey, I’m back.” Virgil smirked, coming into the bedroom. However, Virgil’s face fell the moment he noticed the cage door was swung open.

Cursing to himself, Virgil came over to inspect the scene of the crime. Briefly Virgil thought Thomas had escaped on his own, but that wouldn’t make sense. If Thomas could open the door, why did he wait throughout the night?

 _He’s scared of you._ Virgil’s mind reminded him. _He had to be sure you wouldn’t stop him._

Virgil winced at his thoughts, trying to come up with any other solution. Thomas had promised to stay a week, right? That had to account for something. Unless Thomas was just as bad as humans.

Speaking of humans…Virgil’s eyes widened, remembering what day it was. Monday. Roman was coming over today for some prop supplies.

Virgil cursed to himself again, trying to remember Roman’s schedule. All he could think about was how scared Thomas must be; Roman wasn’t exactly careful. 

“What time is it?” Virgil muttered to himself, running through his best friend’s schedule as he glanced at his phone for the time. 4:53. So…by now, Roman would be out of class, and heading to rehearsal. Virgil groaned, grabbing his coat and heading back out to his car. He always hated dealing with Roman’s theater friends. The whole group was far too… _extra._

“VIRGIL!” Immediately Virgil was greeted by the worst of these drama kids, Remy. The techie threw his arm around Virgil’s shoulders, making him cringe. “Gurl, where you been?”

“Home.” Virgil said curtly, removing Remy’s arm. “Where’s Roman? I need to speak with him.”

“Roman?” Remy put his arm back, guiding the uncomfortably anxious teen down the hall. “Yeah, he’s down this way. He’s just about to show us something.”

Virgil paled significantly, beginning to sweat with nerves. Remy seemed not to notice, sipping on his frappuccino as he all but shoved Virgil into one of the music rooms. There Roman stood, surrounded by a small crowd of theatre majors.

“And _this_ ,” Roman paused for dramatic affect, baiting the audience, “is my rendition of a one-man bohemian rhapsody.” 

Virgil let out a small sigh of relief, realizing Roman was just showing off more of his drama crap. At least Thomas was safe. Well, hopefully safe.

“…Virgil?” All eyes turned to the emo as Roman’s performance paused, the actor frowning at Virgil in confusion. “What are you doing here?” 

“I need to talk to you.” Virgil said through gritted teeth. Realizing he was indeed in trouble, Roman excused himself from the crowd. 

“What is it?” Roman asked.

“I need to talk to you, _alone_.” Virgil roughly grabbed Roman’s arm, heading into a classroom at random. He spoke in whispers, knowing some students were probably pressed against the other side of the door, listening. “Where’s Thomas?”

“Thomas?” Roman whispered, looking confused.

“I know you know.” Virgil held his hands together to indicate the borrower’s height. “ _Thomas_.”

“…Oh!” Roman’s eyes widened in realization, and Virgil quickly shushed him.

“Yes, Thomas.” Virgil repeated, getting agitated. “Where is he.” 

“Why, he’s right here.” Roman quickly assured him, reaching for his pocket before feeling it was empty. “…or not.”

“What!” Virgil hissed. 

“Don’t panic!” Roman flinched, already bringing his arms up to protect his face. His mind began to race. “I…I know where he is!” Roman’s eyes widened, realizing that was true.

“Well, where is he?” Virgil demanded.

“I, um…” Roman’s face turned a bright red in embarrassment. “I…may have forgotten him. At school.”

Virgil blinked, his rage taking a moment to manifest itself.

“HOW DO YOU _FORGET_ A PERSON!” Virgil yelled, forgetting the listening ears on the other side of the door. 

“Look, we can talk about my faults later!” Roman backed up a few steps towards the door, chuckling nervously. “Let’s focus on getting Thomas back, alright?” He opened the door, dashing out towards the parking lot. 

“ _Romaaaan_!” Virgil yelled, heading after his friend and ignoring the students who were trying to act inconspicuous around the door frame.

————————————-

It was strange how quiet Logan was being. He was used to humans being all up in his personal space, asking him questions and what not. But Logan was just sitting at his desk, invested in whatever he had up on the computer. Thomas himself was still on the bed, resting like Logan had told him to do.

…But wouldn’t this be the perfect opportunity to escape? Logan was distracted, having not even glanced at Thomas for a solid twenty minutes. And he wasn’t trapped either. Which probably meant Logan thought he was too injured to do much of anything. Thankfully, that wasn’t the case.

Thomas quickly stood up and slid of the pillow before heading towards the side of the bed. Sending another glance towards Logan, just to make sure he was still distracted, he started climbing down the sheets. 

Unlike when he tried escaping with Virgil or Roman, there was no yell of surprise or thudding footsteps. Thomas was free to run underneath the bed and towards his exit. He grinned as he entered the walls. He was _free_.

Now to get packing so he could get the heck out of there.

——————————————–

It was almost an hour later when Logan’s phone alarm went off, signaling it was time to take a break and eat dinner. Logan stretched out his arms, letting out a small groan. He looked over at the pillow, debating which of his three dietary plans they should follow tonight.

…

“Thomas?”

————————————-

Thomas, as he was packing up to leave the building, realized that he would need at least some food for the long journey. And he was unfortunately out of that. He really didn’t want to go back out in the open but he _needed_ food or he wouldn’t survive the journey. 

He definitely wasn’t going back to Virgil, Roman, or Logan’s apartment. But there was still one apartment left. Patton’s. If he just went for a quick borrowing, he should be just fine.

With a plan in mind, Thomas walked until he was at the exit he knew led into Patton’s apartment. Taking a deep breath, he went out into the open, finding himself on the floor in the kitchen. He looked around, but when he didn’t see the human he wasted no time in running towards the counter and flinging his hook up. He started to climb.

Thomas really should have waited. Clearly today was just his unlucky day. There was a trembling in the ground that filled Thomas with dread, unable to do anything but pray he wasn’t spotted as he heard the human coming into the kitchen.

And then Patton gasped, dirty dinner dishes in hand as he took in the sight before him.

Thomas tensed, stopping mid climb as he heard a loud gasp from behind him. He closed his eyes. _Are you serious._

Well, Thomas was at a loss of what to do now, hanging there. He could either finish the climb or go back down, but either way it would be all to easy for the human to catch him. Still, he had to try. So, he decided to slide down.

Patton rushed over, tossing his dirty dishes in the sink before crouching down. He grabbed the string in one hand and reached for the creature with the other, pulling the string higher to make the task easier.

No, no, _no!_ Thomas looked around, seeing that he was being lifted higher as well as seeing the giant hand coming right for him. Not wanting to be grabbed, he pushed himself off of the string and jumped.

“Eep!” Patton let out a startled yelp, quickly going to catch the little guy. Thankfully he was successful, cupping his hands around and bringing it closer to his chest.

Thomas squirmed in the new pair of hands, tired of being in them. “Let me go!” He yelled before shutting his mouth. He groaned, what was up with him and not being able to keep his stupid mouth shut?

“Y-you can talk!” Patton’s eyes widened, hands fumbling and almost dropping the person in surprise. Patton quickly readjusted his grip, bringing the little guy up to his face so he could see.

Thomas winced, leaning away as Patton brought him closer. “Um…no I can’t.”

“Yes you can, I heard you!” Patton’s eyes sparkled with excitement. “Wow, I can’t believe it! My name’s Patton by the way. I’ve never met a…well, what are you?”

Thomas sighed, having expected that question after having heard it several times now. “I can’t say…but my name is Thomas.”

“It’s nice to meet ya, Thomas!” Patton reached out, gently shaking Thomas’ arm between his fingertips. Patton marveled at the feeling of tiny fingers atop his own.

Thomas tensed as Patton took his arm between two fingers. He didn’t dare move, too scared that his arm would be broken or just straight up ripped off. “Yeah, right, but uh, Patton? Could you uh…let me go?” Thomas might as well get straight into it. Besides, Patton might actually listen to him. Out of everyone he watched, he always though Patton would be the one to listen to him.

Unfortunately, Patton seemed too involved in looking at Thomas’ arm to hear his question. 

“You are so cute!” Patton squealed, standing up.

Thomas blinked, trying to ignore the bad feeling in his stomach. “P-Patton?”

“That’s my name, don’t wear it out!” Patton giggled, walking over towards the living room. Once he was sat on the couch Patton felt comfortable enough to twirl Thomas around in his fingers, pausing to feel how soft his hair was.

Thomas yelped, not liking how he was being manhandled and then tried to duck away from the fingers on his head to no avail. “S-Stop!” He yelled, not able to do much else.

“Aww, it’s okay, little guy!” Patton hugged Thomas to his chest, almost smothering him. “I’ll take good care of you.”

“W-What? No, no let me go!” Thomas started pushing against Patton’s chest. 

“It’s okay, I’ve got you~” Patton gently shushed the little guy, petting his back to help calm him down.

Patton wasn’t listening to him. That wasn’t good. Out of all of them Thomas thought Patton would have listened to him the most. “P-Please…”

“There we go, that’s it.” Patton kept his voice soft as the struggles seemed to be lessening. “I’m not gonna hurtcha.”

Thomas stopped and deflated, knowing there was no point in continuing to fight back if it yielded no results. He _did_ believe that Patton wouldn’t hurt him, he had never seemed violent before, but Thomas was worried about something else. 

Thomas had a feeling Patton saw him as nothing more than a pet. And that…wasn’t good. Thomas kept his head down, trying to keep his tears from falling. He should have never come here.

“Are you tired, lil’ guy?” Patton asked, noticing that Thomas had quieted down. 

Thomas just shook his head. Well, maybe he was a little tired but he didn’t think he would be able to sleep right now if he tried.

“Hmm.” Patton pursed his lips thoughtfully, gently prying Thomas off his chest so that he could get a better look. “Are you hungry?” After all, the little guy had been in the kitchen.

Thomas shrugged. He had just had food not to long ago but he could eat. He could at least get food out of this whole situation.

Patton brightened at the response, now excited to cook for this cutie. “Okay!” Patton held Thomas out in front of him, coming back to the kitchen. He cradled Thomas to his chest in one hand, using the other to open the fridge. “What would you like?”

Thomas winced, shifting in the hand and wishing Patton would just put him down already. “I’m okay with anything.” He said quietly.

“Aw, that’s so sweet of you.” Patton said, pulling out some baby carrots. “So cooperative, it’s nice.”

Thomas winced at how Patton was speaking to him. Driving home the point that the human saw him as nothing more than a pet. He squirmed some more. “Patton, could you at least put me down?”

“In a minute, kiddo.” Patton answered, closing the door with his elbow and heading back towards his bedroom.

Thomas went from squirming to straight up struggling once again. He was tired of Patton not listening to him. “Put me down! Please!” 

“Okay, okay!” Patton hurried over to his bed, noticing Thomas getting squirmy again. He set Thomas down on one of the many pillows, holding out a baby carrot for him to grab.

Thomas sighed, glad to finally be free of Patton’s grip but he flinched when Patton came at him with carrot. Watching Patton warily, Thomas slowly grabbed the the carrot from him and took a bite.

“That’s it, great job kiddo.” Patton looked pleased as he watched Thomas nibble on a carrot, already holding out another one.

Thomas grit his teeth, hating the tone Patton was using with him. Without thinking much, he threw the carrot at Patton’s face.

“Ah!” Patton gasped, jolting back. His hand raised to where the carrot had hit his cheek. “…ow.” He said softly, more hurt emotionally than physically.

Thomas froze, realizing what he had just done. He did his best to scoot back on the pillow, looking at Patton with fear.

“Why’d you do that?” Patton’s eyebrows furrowed, leaning forwards.

Thomas bit his lip, deciding to be truthful. “I don’t like how you’re treating me.” Thomas explained as he leaned back.

“That’s no reason to throw things.” Patton frowned. “We use our words when we’re upset.”

Thomas winced once again at the tone. “Okay, fine. I don’t like that you’re treating me like a-like a _child_.” For some reason, Thomas couldn’t bring himself to say pet but his point still stood.

Patton blinked. “I’m sorry kiddo, I’m just trying to be polite.”

“I-I know. And thank you for the food and all but I’m not much older than you and can take care of myself.” Thomas tried to explain, holding out hope that Patton would understand where the others hadn’t.

“Aww, I’m sure you can.” Patton said reassuringly, bringing a hand over to rub Thomas’ back.

Thomas tried to push the hand away. “I _can_.” Why did no one believe him?

“Of course.” Patton cooed, rubbing his hair one last time.


	10. How Do You Know What's Good For Him?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ThAt'S mY OpiNIOn!!
> 
> Or, a whole bunch of humans each think they know best for Thomas.

“Did you find him?” Virgil asked anxiously, meeting back up with Roman in front of the school building. By now it was dark out. Roman shook his head.

“No, and by now we’ve checked every building here.” Roman said sorrowfully. 

“We-we can’t just stop looking!” Virgil looked ready to pull his hair out in frustration and worry.

“Virgil, relax.” Roman tried to comfort his friend, but the moment he stepped forwards Virgil hissed at him. Immediately Roman stepped back, putting his hands up in surrender. “Or, don’t relax! It’s all good. But…well, it’s not exactly like we can keep searching in the dark like this.”

It was true. Even if he wanted to, Virgil’s cell phone battery was quickly dying. Soon he would be without a flashlight. 

“We can head home, get some real flashlights, charge our phones…” Roman listed off all the benefits of going back. “Then we’ll come back and search again. Alright?”

“…fine.” Virgil agreed, heading towards the car.

However, when they returned to the apartment, a new element to their issue presented itself. A harried Logan greeted them in the lobby, looking positively frazzled.

“Have you seen Thomas?” Logan asked.

“Thomas?”

“You know him, too?”

Roman and Virgil both looked shocked at this turn of events.

“Yes, Thomas.” Logan nodded, relieved someone finally understood. “He’s a little person…thing that I found at school and-”

“Borrower.” Virgil interrupted. “He’s a borrower. You say you found him at school?”

“He was just wandering the halls.” Logan affirmed.

“That’s weird, I left him in a classroom…” Roman frowned to himself.

“If you thought he was going to stay there you really are an idiot.” Virgil gripped Logan’s shoulders, staring at his friend with determination. “Where is he now?”

“I came up to you first, remember?” Logan deadpanned, looking annoyed. “One moment he was under my care, the next he simply…disappeared.”

“He does that.” Roman nodded solemnly. 

“I’ve been combing the entire building for him but have found no trace of him.” Logan sighed. “No one in the lobby except the two of you have even heard of Thomas.”

“Well, he’s supposed to be a secret.” Virgil muttered irritably.

“Never fear, my friends!” Roman stepped between them, throwing an arm around their shoulders. “Together, I am sure we can find him!” 

The three set about searching for Thomas. Finding nothing on the first floor, the group moved up to the second floor. 

“Remember, subtlety is key.” Logan muttered. Virgil sent a glare at Roman. The drama king ignored both of them, knocking on the door.

“Patton, are you in there?” At the sound of Roman’s voice, Patton’s eyes widened. He glanced between Thomas and the door, getting an idea.

Thomas’ eyes widened, recognizing the voice behind the door. “…Oh no.”

Patton scooped Thomas up, eager to show him off. He rushed over to the door, throwing it open to reveal the surprised faces of his three best friends in the whole world.

“Guys, look what I found!” Patton grinned, holding Thomas aloft for all to see.

Thomas tensed as he saw not just one but _all_ of the humans at the door. Staring right at him. Overwhelmed by having four humans surrounding him, all Thomas could do was shake.

The four humans were quiet for a moment, although for very different reasons.

“Patton, inside!” Virgil hissed, looking around to make sure they were alone. 

“Wait, huh?” Patton tilted his head in confusion, letting his friends walk past him into the room. Virgil shut and locked the door behind him, always paranoid.

“Hello again, Thomas.” Logan looked relieved, giving Thomas a nod.

“Thomas!” Roman cried happily, pulling Thomas from Patton’s hands. He twirled around for a moment with the borrower in his hands. “Oh, thank goodness you’re alright!”

Thomas groaned, feeling dizzy and not just from the sudden grab and twirl around. He looked up at Roman and then glanced at the others. This was _bad_. This was _very, very_ _bad_. 

“Roman, you’re making him ill.” Logan frowned, grabbing Thomas into his own hands.

“How do you know what’s good for him?” Roman pouted.

“That’s my opinion.” Logan explained.

“Now now, kiddos, no need to fight!” Patton laughed nervously, taking Thomas back.

“You’re all acting like he’s some sort of doll.” Virgil glared, snatching up Thomas himself.

“Oh, like _you’re_ innocent, mister hamster cage.” Roman sneered, his reflexes just fast enough to grasp Thomas by the back of the shirt as Virgil attempted to dodge out of the way. 

“Ah!” Thomas yelled as he found himself without a surface beneath him. Not wanting to fall, he clung to the fingers above him, pulling his knees up.

“Roman, be careful!” Patton warned, glancing at Thomas nervously. 

Logan snatched Thomas out of the air, glaring at Roman. “What is wrong with you?”

“I was _being_ careful!” Roman insisted, reaching for Thomas again. 

“No you _weren’t_ -”

“Please, calm down-”

“What gives you the right-!”

“I _know_ what is best for him-”

The four’s squabbles began to intermingle, Thomas being tossed between them like a game of hot potato.

“STOP!” Thomas suddenly shouted, overwhelmed by all the yelling and being passed around.

Miraculously, the humans all froze, staring down at Thomas. The borrower was still mid-pass, cupped between Logan and Patton’s hands while Roman had a hold on the back of his shirt and Virgil was making a grab for his arm. 

As everyone froze, Thomas took a second to breathe. But his breaths soon turned shallow and sobs started to escape him. “Just stop! Please! Please…” He cried into his hands.

“Ah…” Logan looked unsure of how to deal with this, and allowed Thomas to tumble fully into Patton’s hands. Virgil and Roman released their holds as well, looking like scolded school children.

“Oh, kiddo…” Patton looked almost as upset as Thomas, hugging Thomas to his chest once again. 

Thomas struggled as soon as he realized where he was. He found himself pushing against the chest once again. “NO! Put me down!” He didn’t want to be in any one else’s hands. He just wanted _away_.

“B-but…” Patton blubbered for a response, not understanding.

“Ha! See, I told you he doesn’t want the rest of you.” Roman said triumphantly, scooping Thomas back up.

Thomas grit his teeth, tears still falling. “NO! I don’t want _any_ of you! PUT. ME. DOWN!” He was done with all of this. He just wanted his life back.

“Roman, put him down.” Logan instructed. “We are clearly overwhelming him.”

“Aww, the poor babe.” Tears continued to collect in Patton’s eyes, but he wiped them away.

“But, what if he runs off again?” Roman looked down at Thomas worriedly.

“Set him on the coffee table.” Virgil shrugged. “He’s not that fast, if he runs we’ll catch him.” 

So Roman did as the others instructed, setting Thomas down on the coffee table. Each human chose a side, surrounding the borrower.

Finally glad to be put down on a solid surface, Thomas curled in on himself. Letting himself catch a breather as he ignored how the humans surrounded him. He started crying harder as he realized he was _still_ very trapped and that the humans _still_ didn’t see him as his own person.

Things were looking bleak for him.


	11. I Think We Broke Thomas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone continues to bicker about what they should do with 'their' borrower, and Thomas thinks they've all forgotten he's his own person.

“…Perhaps four human individuals it a bit much for Thomas to process.” Logan observed.

“Well we have to decide what to do with Thomas first!” Roman protested. “And I for one am not leaving him.”

“You _forgot_ him. At _school._ ” Virgil reminded him slowly through gritted teeth.

“Wait, what?” Patton looked between his friends, confused. “I’m sorry…how do you all know Thomas, exactly?”

Thomas winced at Roman’s words and then glanced up through his bangs at Patton. “Well,” Thomas started, feeling brave. He wasn’t about to be talked over like he wasn’t even there. “Virgil kidnapped me and locked me in a cage and then Roman came and kidnapped me again. He then took me to school were I tried to escape but then Logan came along and kidnapped me a third time. So, you know, the usual.”

“I did not _kidnap_ -”

“You fell on me first!” 

“Gentlemen!” Roman spoke up, putting his hands up as if to place a wall between Logan and Virgil. “Thomas was _talking_ , and you have no right to undermine his feelings like that. That being said, Thomas, _kidnapping_? Really, me?”

“ _Yes, all_ of you have kidnapped me at some point!” Thomas shouted, finally standing from his curled up position. He briefly wondered why he was suddenly so brave before realizing it was because, well…

He really had nothing left to lose.

“That’s what this is! I’m being held against my will, unable to go home. Being trapped in a cage!” He motioned towards Virgil. “Acting like you know what’s best for me!” He motioned to both Roman and Logan. “And treating me like a _pet_!” He motioned towards Patton at that.

The four glanced around the circle as if trying to judge who was guilty of the worst crime.

“…y’know personally I think cages and pets are a lot worse than what I did.” Roman murmured. 

“Thomas, I would like to point out that my behavior towards your well being is not meant to be derogatory.” Logan adjusted his glasses. “I do the same for all the individuals here.”

“That’s just because you think you’re right about everything.” Virgil sneered.

“I don’t think I’m right, I know I’m right.” Logan corrected.

“I don’t care, I didn’t ask for it.” Thomas said to Logan, before turning to Roman. “And you were _all_ bad. But despite Mr. putting me in a cage and Mr. treating me like a pet, you were probably the worst.” 

“Wait… what?” Roman looked hurt by Thomas’ comment.

“Seriously?” Virgil raised an eyebrow. He thought he had to have been the worst with the whole cage thing.

“What did Roman do?” Patton asked almost timidly.

“A lot. Dropping me for one thing.” Thomas explained. “But Roman was only slightly worse than the rest of you. Again, you were all pretty bad.”

“I rescued you from where Roman abandoned you.” Logan looked annoyed at the prospect of being grouped with the others. “Not to mention, I helped you begin to heal from the injuries you accumulated from the first two.”

Thomas bit the inside of his cheek. “I guess you weren’t too bad. But you still wouldn’t let me go and implied that you would never.” Thomas looked down.

“None of you listened to me. The closest was Virgil and he didn’t listen the _right_ way. You all think you know what’s best for me just because I’m smaller than you but you _don’t!_ I’m a grown adult who has been living on my own since I was 16. I don’t need any help. So, Let. Me. Go.”

“Look, just because I wasn’t all for you going off and robbing the neighbors doesn’t mean i was listening the ‘wrong’ way.” Virgil argued.

“Why would Thomas do something like that?” Patton gasped.

“Thomas, how old _are_ you?” Logan asked, his curiosity making him miss the point.

Thomas groaned. They _still_ weren’t listening. “I’m 29.”

“Dang, Thomas, you’re old.” Roman whistled. The average age of this group collectively was only about 22. 

“We’re getting off track.” Virgil waved his hands a bit. “Look, I still stand by my thought that Thomas should stay with us. He promised to stay a week with me, but if for some reason he’s more comfortable with one of you I’m willing to make an exception.”

“And what if I’m not comfortable with _any_ of you?” Thomas pointed out. More tears escaped him. “Why-Why won’t you just let me _leave_.”

“Thomas, I’m so sorry!” Patton leaned down to put his hands on the coffee table and be at eye level with him. “I didn’t mean to, I wasn’t trying to treat you like…like a-” Patton began to blubber through his words again, tearing up.

“Oh, wonderful.” Logan pushed up his glasses. “Virgil, you have managed to upset them both simultaneously.”

Thomas _did_ feel a little bad, watching Patton crying on the table behind him. He shook his head, trying his best to ignore it. “You guys still aren’t listening…” Thomas muttered. At this rate, they never would.

“I’m listening, I’m just ignoring you.” Virgil shrugged.

“See, that-” Roman pointed at Virgil, “-that right there? Not helpful. Lose the atti-tude, stormy dude.”

“Why can’t we just let him go?” Patton looked up at his friends with puppy dog eyes.

“He’s _injured_.” Logan reminded the group, being the only one observant enough to remember. “If we send him out on his own his probability of survival is significantly lowered.”

Thomas frowned. “It’s not that bad. I’ve been through much worse and still managed to borrow what I needed.” He was starting to like Patton a bit better, though. He just hoped the others wouldn’t change his mind.

“Thomas, you really are hurt?!” Patton gasped, fresh tears springing up as he remembered just how many times he had hugged Thomas. “Do you need an ice pack? A hot pack?”

“Patton, stay focused.” Roman reminded him, snapping his fingers once. 

“Yeah, he said he was fine.” Virgil pointed out.

“Yeah. I’m fine Patton, you don’t have to worry about me.” Thomas said, turning to Patton to give him a soft smile. He then immediately realized what he was doing and looked away. _Crap, he couldn’t get attached. Abort, abort!_

“Yes, you _do_ have to worry about him!” Logan argued, looking both frustrated and worried. “If Thomas is not in optimal physical condition he risks greater injuries or even death.”

“Hnng…” Patton made a distressed puppy sound, not sure who to believe as he looked around the room.

“Stop doing your weird scientific coddling thing, sir issac nerd-ton.” Roman gave him a shoo-ing motion with his hand, looking annoyed. “You just want to push your weird water guzzling agenda again to keep Thomas from living a life full of adventures!”

Thomas sighed, sitting down in the center of the table. Not quite curling in on himself but almost. Why did he even try. “I’m _fine_.” 

“All I’m proposing is that we at least allow Thomas to heal before we do anything brash.” Logan put his hands up in defense. 

“Wow, Logan actually contributing something useful.” Virgil raised an eyebrow, looking across the table. “That’s a first.”

“Virgil, don’t be mean!” Patton gasped, leaning over to cover Logan’s ears.

“Patton, I’m not a child.” Logan gave Patton a small glare, removing Patton’s arms. 

Thomas looked up, realizing there might be an upside to them all ignoring him. With all of them talking over them, they were barely paying any attention to what he was doing. And why wouldn’t they, he was essentially trapped up there with the four of them surrounding him on all sides. But maybe…they wouldn’t notice if he snuck off. Thomas had no hope it would actually work but he wouldn’t forgive himself if he didn’t at least _try_.

Standing up, he decided to head for the space between Patton and Logan, since they seemed the most distracted. He slowly started to shift in that direction before taking off. He didn’t slow down as he got closer to the edge though, because his plan wasn’t to climb down but to jump.

“He’s making a break for it!” Virgil tensed up, his nerves skyrocketing the closer Thomas got to the edge.

“Careful-!” Patton gasped, but Logan was faster. Quickly Logan released Patton’s wrists, reaching out to instead catch the borrower.

Seeing the hand coming for him, Thomas took a sharp turn away from Logan and his hand. It brought him closer to Patton but the edge was not that much farther away. He ran the extra foot, before he jumped off.

Patton dove to catch Thomas, feeling the little guy land safely in his palms. “Oh my goodness.” Patton let out a worried breath, sitting back up and examining Thomas closely. “Are you alright?”

“He’s fine, he was just trying to…escape.” Virgil felt a bitter aftertaste grow on his tongue at the thought.

“Well that doesn’t mean he’s not hurt!” Roman argued, having personally experienced just how much a fall could hurt Thomas. “Have some sympathy for once, sour grapes.”

Thomas didn’t say anything. Instead, he shifted so he was hugging his knees and looking down. He _knew_ his attempt wasn’t going to work…but for a second there he had really thought he was going to get away.

But no, he was still at the mercy of these four humans. 

The four humans he had spent the better part of two years watching and had started to think that maybe…in a different universe where _he_ was a human…they could have been friends. 

He’d rather be in that universe than one where they saw him as nothing more than a criminal, or a pet, or a child.

“…Thomas?” Patton asked softly, lifting him higher. “Are you okay?” All of his friends quieted their bickering, watching as Patton gently nudged Thomas’ side.

At the touch, Thomas curled up further. “I just want to go home.” He said softly.


	12. ...Patton, what are you doing?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Patton takes action!

Patton felt his heart break, looking back at the three other humans sat around the table. There was silence for a moment.

“What are we doing?” Roman was the first to speak up, shaking his head sadly. “I mean, we.. _.I_ … was too preoccupied with all my ideas and curiosity that I never even stopped to consider if my actions were truly wanted.”

“And you dropped him.” Logan point out.

“And I dropped him.” Roman nodded solemnly. 

“And therefore, we must help Thomas to rectify your-” Logan was interrupted by Roman.

“Stop acting as though you know what’s best!” Roman turned angrily to him. “What, you think you’re just above us all because you’ve got a big brain and glasses?”

“I’m sorry, when did this turn into a debate about eyewear?” Logan frowned, not understanding.

As the two began to squabble, Virgil had eyes only for Patton. He watched anxiously as Patton began to shift, knowing that look in Patton’s eyes. “Pat…” Virgil said in a warning tone.

But suddenly Patton was on his feet, dashing down the hallway.

Thomas didn’t have time to fully process what Roman had said, before Patton suddenly shot to his feet and ran. Thomas steadied himself on the hand as he looked warily at Patton. “W-What are you doing?” Thomas asked nervously as Patton continued to run from the others.

“Patton!” The others cried out his name, hot on his heels, but Patton ignored them all. He held Thomas close to his chest, ducking into his bedroom and locking the door.

“Patton, open up!” Virgil instructed, pounding on the door.

“C’mon, Padre, come back.” Roman’s voice joined him. 

“Patton, think about this.” Logan warned, and Patton backed up from the door, breaking heavily.

“Y-you don’t know what you’re doing!” Patton called out at them. “All this fighting, this arguing, it’s…it’s not right!”

At Patton’s shouting Thomas covered his ears. What was happening? Why was Patton doing this?

Patton winced, realizing all of this must be very frightening to Thomas. 

“Sorry.” Patton apologized, for now ignoring his friend’s continued pleas from the other side of the door. “I know this looks bad, but, um, they mean well. Really! They’re just not…thinking right now.” Patton sighed, shaking his head. 

Thomas slowly lowered his hands from his head, looking at Patton warily. “S-So…what are you…going to do?” The borrower asked.

“Well…” Patton bit his lip, looking around his bedroom. “I, ah, I meant to bring you home, but I didn’t really think this far.” Patton gave an awkward chuckle. “Guess we’re stuck in here for a bit first.”

Thomas’ eyes widened. “You’re going to let me go home? Really?” Thomas tried not to get his hopes up but he was failing miserably.

“Of course, kiddo.” Patton smiled gently down at Thomas. He pet Thomas’ hair gently for a moment, before remembering what Thomas had said earlier. Quickly Patton pulled his hand back, looking embarrassed. “But ah…where is home, exactly?”

Thomas found himself less hesitant to answer this time, especially if it meant he could go home. “I live here, actually. In the walls.” Thomas smiled for what seemed like the first time in a long time. “In fact, I have an entrance underneath your dresser!” He pointed towards the piece of furniture and hoped Patton wouldn’t change his mind about all this.

“Oh!” Patton set Thomas down on the bed, using both his hands to pull his dresser out of the way. With a grunt he succeeded, kneeling down to look at the wall. He turned back to Thomas with a frown. “I don’t see it.”

“I’m not surprised.” Thomas said, already halfway to the floor as he used the sheets of the bed to climb down. He then jogged over to the wall and easily found and pushed open his entrance.

“Woah.” Patton let out a breath in awe, pressing his head to the floor so he could try and peer into the secret doorway. “That’s so cool!”

Thomas smiled and turned back towards the door. He thought about just leaving but decided Patton deserved better than that. “Thanks Patton. You aren’t so bad after all.”

“Thanks, kidd- Thomas.” Patton corrected himself, still pressed to the floor. “Take care of yourself, okay?”

“I will.” And with that, Thomas was gone.

Patton marveled at how well the door fit in with the wallpaper. He ran his hand across the spot Thomas had disappeared, not even feeling a crease. With a sad smile, Patton slowly pushed the dresser back into place. 

A loud knock on the door made Patton jump, remembering this was far from over. He sighed, feeling unready to face them but knowing it was time. With only a little hesitation, Patton opened the door.

Instantly the three came tumbling in, falling to a heap on the floor.

“Where is he?” Roman looked around frantically, looking nervous as they all untangled themselves. “Is he alright?”

“Yes, Thomas is…fine.” Patton said, his tone careful. 

“…he’s gone, isn’t he?” Virgil guessed, already knowing the truth. At Patton’s nod, Virgil gave a small curse.

“What?” Logan frowned, gazing around the bedroom. “But where could he have gone?” His eyes briefly flickered to the window, looking nervous.

“He’s in the walls.” Virgil groaned, rubbing at his face. “Patton…”

“I did what needed to be done!” Patton insisted, looking stern. “Thomas wasn’t going to be happy here, he deserves better.”

“Well done, Padre!” Roman grinned from ear to ear, coming over to pat Patton on the back. “I always knew you had a heroic spirit inside you.”

“What?” Virgil’s lip curled in confusion. “Roman, you were trying to stop him too.”

“Well I wouldn’t have been if I’d known what he was doing!” Roman insisted. “Frankly all that chatter made me realize I’m enough of a danger to myself, let alone dragging someone else along for the ride.”

“…perhaps I was being a bit controlling as well.” Logan admitted. “I just wished for Thomas to have good health, but…” Logan sighed, pushing up his glasses. “Patton is correct, Thomas would have been permanently unsatisfied if forced to stay under our misguided care.”

“Aww, Logan.” Patton came over, giving Logan a hug that was stiffly received. “I knew you cared, in your own way.” 

Roman looked expectantly at Virgil, raising an eyebrow.

“Stop looking at me like I’m the bad guy.” Virgil’s shoulders tensed as he hunched slightly, shoving his hands into his pockets.

“Virgil…” Patton approached him slowly. “I know you know the most about Thomas, but…”

“I’m not gonna go after him, alright?” Virgil qualmed their fears. He let out a tense sigh, closing his eyes. “I just…I was _trying_ to do the right thing, and I’m obviously not good at that, so you can all just stop giving me the death glare.”

Virgil opened his eyes, not looking at them as his gaze shifted to the wall. “I just wish I could have … apologized, and I hope he’s okay.”

“I’m sure he is.” Patton said, gently laying a hand on Virgil’s shoulder.


	13. Man Thomas Can't Catch a Break, Huh?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thomas tries to make his great escape and gets the worst luck of the draw.

Thomas wasted no time in packing all his essentials and heading towards outside. He didn’t have any food but he should be fine. He’s lasted a long time without any and he’s already had several things to eat all day. Which should hold him over.

When he opened the exit to the outside, he saw that it was actually sprinkling. Thomas winced, debating on whether or not to wait the rain out. But it was just a light drizzle…and he wanted as far away from this building as possible. So the borrower decided to take his chances with the rain.

He had decided to go two buildings over, to put as much distance between him and this building as he could. But that meant quite the trek for him. Sighing, he began his journey.

As he stepped into the grass, ducking low and carefully watching his surroundings in case a human came out, the rain got worse. Gone was the light droplets, it was now full on pouring. And for a borrower, that was bad. He spit out some water and tried to use his backpack to cover him as he ran towards the edge of the grass.

Through the harsh downpour though, he was unable to see the human walking towards him. It appeared the human was clueless as well, which was good. But what wasn’t good was the swift kick Thomas received, sending him flying back across the pavement and into the next patch of grass.

Thomas groaned, spitting out water as he laid in a shallow, muddy puddle. He tried to sit up but fell back down with a loud cry. Splashing his face into the water. He turned his head in order to breath, laying there in pain. The borrower’s vision blurred as his head pounded and he shut his eyes tight, hoping it would just stop.

Roman thought the rain was fitting for his mood, letting it soak him to the core as he went for a walk to clear his head. He sighed, ducking his head and watching a few droplets as they fell from his hair, dropping to the sidewalk below. 

He had been so…so _stupid_. What had he been thinking? He had treated Thomas like some curious fairy or doll or…Roman paused in his steps, shuffling his tennis shoes against the wet pavement. The worst part was there was no one to blame but himself. 

Roman frowned, noticing a strange track by the side of the sidewalk. His eyes followed it, directly into a puddle where a familiar face sat trembling and in pain.

“Thomas!” Roman cried out, kneeling down to scoop up the borrower.

Barely recognizing who it was, Thomas tried in vain to struggle. “N-No…” He groaned in pain once again as he moved his arm wrong.

“I’m so sorry about this.” Roman whispered, standing up and quickly heading back to the apartment building. He knew Thomas didn’t want to be with them, but he couldn’t just leave Thomas out here to die! Logan was right, they should have never- 

Roman paused in the lobby, dripping water onto the carpet. Logan would know what to do. With this mindset, Roman began to head up to Logan’s apartment, taking the stairs two at a time but ever mindful to keep Thomas steady in his palms.

Thomas continued to tremble in Roman’s hand. Both from the pain and the cold as the rain had soaked through his clothes completely. “L-Let…g-go.” Thomas tried to get out, teeth chattering so much it was painful. He was just barely hanging on to consciousness at this point.

“I will.” Roman promised, meaning it. He knocked hurriedly on Logan’s door, not stopping for a moment until the vet student answered the door, looking tired and a little confused.

“Thomas is hurt.” Roman explained, instantly gaining Logan’s attention as he held the borrower out slightly. 

Logan’s eyes widened, quickly ushering Roman inside. “What happened?” Logan asked quietly, already grabbing his med kit.

“I don’t know.” Roman admitted. “I was out in the rain and I found him like this.” Of course, the way Roman was leaving a water trail made it perfectly clear where Roman had been.

The blurry sight of two humans just made Thomas try to struggle more but he immediately stopped with a loud cry of pain. He clenched his middle tight, tears mixing in with the water streaks from the rain.

“Ah!” Roman began to get frantic. “Logan, what do we do?”

“First of all, don’t panic.” Logan pulled on his gloves, pulling a dish towel out to fold up and serve as a bed. “Set him here.”

Roman did as instructed, setting Thomas down.

“It’s alright, Thomas.” Logan spoke softly, beginning to wipe the borrower clean with a washcloth.

Thomas tried to push against the washcloth but his attempts were weaker than usual. He quickly gave up and succumbed to whatever Logan was trying to do.

“He’s experiencing some possible symptoms of hypothermia, but otherwise looks relatively uninjured.” Logan winced. “Minus the…usual bruising.”

“What does that mean?” Roman asked, peering over Logan’s shoulder. “Is he going to be alright or not, Dr. DoLittle?” 

“Likely, yes, he will recover.” Logan nodded. “Although first we will need to wrap him in blankets to gradually warm his body’s core temperature.”

At the first mention of ‘blankets’, Roman was already out of the room, dashing back to the living room with several of Logan’s blankets in his arms.

“…I think we will only need one.” Logan observed, looking down at Thomas’ size. His face fell, realizing how little Thomas was moving. He gently lifted the borrower, grabbing a blanket from Roman and swaddling Thomas in the soft fabric.

At this point Thomas just barely knew what was going all. He didn’t know how he became wrapped up in warmth but he wasn’t about to complain. Ever so slowly, he stopped shivering.

“Keep an eye on him.” Logan instructed, heading into the kitchen. “I’m going to start some soup for when he awakens.” 

Roman nodded, taking his task seriously as he stayed knelt in front of the couch. He took one of the spare blankets around himself, shivering slightly. 

“Thomas?” Roman asked quietly, when a good few minutes had passed. 

Thomas answered with a quiet whimper. His eyes opened just halfway, focusing on the blurry image of Roman in front of him.

“There you are.” Roman let out a sigh of relief. “You had me worried for a moment there.”

Thomas tried to shift his body but hissed as it aggravated his bruises. He should really just stop moving. He wanted to say something-what, he wasn’t sure-but his eyes started to close again. The warmth surrounding him finally lulling him to sleep.

“…Thomas?” Roman blinked, leaning forwards.

“How is he?” Logan asked, returning with a bowl of soup and a bottle cap. 

“Um…I think he fell asleep.” Roman admitted. 

“Roman, what are you still doing in this wet clothes?” Logan frowned, only now fully realizing that Roman was a dripping puddle on the floor. 

Roman sneezed.

“I am not watching over two of you if you get sick as well.” Logan sighed, pulling Roman to his feet. He gently guided Roman to his bedroom. “Put on some of mine, at least they’ll be dry.”

“And nerdy.” Roman muttered, but he did as was asked of him.

Thomas groaned awake, body still hurting but his brain was a lot less fuzzy than before. He opened his eyes before quickly shutting them again at the light. Wanting to be in another position, he carefully shifted so he was on his back.

Logan returned to the living room first, just in time to spot slight movement in the sheets. He sat down in front of the couch, beginning to scoop some soup into the tiny cap.

Thomas opened his eyes again as he heard something and looked up to meet eyes with Logan. Heart pounding, Thomas whimpered as he tried to scoot back.

“It’s alright, Thomas.” Logan spoke softly, keeping his volume low as he held out the cap as an offering. 

Thomas flinched back, looking at Logan warily. After seeing that it was just food in the cap, Thomas carefully sat up and took it. He gave it a little sip and the drink warmed his insides. He sighed happily.

Logan sat back, keeping his eyes on the rest of the soup still in the bowl so that he didn’t unnerve Thomas with his staring. 

Thomas finished up the portion he was giving, feeling sleepy once again. He set the cap to the side before letting out a small yawn.

“Are you still hungry?” Logan kept his voice quiet, noticing how tired the borrower appeared. 

Thomas shook his head. “N-No.” He stuttered, wrapping the blanket tighter around himself. He was so tired but he was scared to fall asleep fully in the human’s presence. 

“Alright.” Logan sat forwards, grabbing the bottle cap and setting it to the side. He gazed thoughtfully at Thomas. “May I ask what happened?”

Thomas squirmed at the gaze, looking down. Thomas sighed, seeing no point in keeping it from Logan. “I was…on my way to the next building but it was raining. It-It wasn’t raining that hard at first and I thought I could make it but then it started raining harder. It got so hard to see and a…a human, um, ended up kicking me across the pavement and into the grass…” Thomas winced, his injuries flaring up just thinking about it.

“Oh.” Logan’s eyebrows knit together with worry. “Are you still in pain? I can get you a hand warmer if you’re still cold, it might help ease any lesser injuries.”

Thomas was still in a bit of pain but the blanket was helping with the cold just fine. And Thomas didn’t want to appear weak with these humans…though he supposed maybe he was too late on that. “I’m-” he yawned. “I’m fine. Thanks and all but I can take it from here-ah!” He tried to push himself up but ended up pulling on one of his sore muscles wrong. He went back down into the blanket, breathing heavily.

Logan winced, hating to see Thomas overexerting himself just to get away. “Thomas, please rest.” Logan urged. “Nothing is going to happen, you’re safe here.”

Thomas wanted to protest but his body had another idea. So with a sigh he gave in, laying back down in the blanket he was given. With one last glance at Logan, Thomas’ eyes closed and he drifted off into a deep sleep.

Logan gave a small sigh of relief, watching Thomas fall asleep. He knew the borrower must still be tense around him, so the act was more one of extreme exhaustion rather than trust, but Logan was thankful for it all the same. The borrower deserved some rest.

“How is he?” Roman asked, coming back into the room in a pair of Logan’s PJs. 

“He’s asleep.” Logan put a finger to his lips, keeping his volume down as he stood up to join Roman. “I think we should do the same.”

“Is he going to be okay?” Roman asked for what felt like the millionth time. 

“Yes.” Logan assured him, setting out some leftover blankets on the floor of his bedroom for Roman. He knew he couldn’t get Roman to leave if he tried. Besides, it was far too late to argue. “Thomas ate some soup and fell asleep. He should be well on the way to recovery.”

Roman settled into the little nest, thankful for Logan’s hospitality. The light was turned off, and both boys were left to stare at the dark ceiling, neither able to get to sleep just yet. 

“Do you think he’ll stick around this time?” Roman whispered. There was a pause.

“I don’t know.” Logan admitted. 


	14. Logan does his Best to Socialize

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He's trying his best, and his best is to call in someone actually competent in the feelings department.

When morning came, both humans were careful to be quiet entering the living room. Thomas was still fast asleep on the couch. After the two shared a breakfast of cereal, Roman begrudgingly went to class. He didn’t want to leave knowing that when he returned Thomas would likely be gone, but Logan would not allow him to skip class.

This left Logan alone, still thoughtfully swirling at his cereal. He didn’t particularly like the idea of Thomas leaving, either. Logan did not want to force the borrower to do anything but he worried what might happen if Thomas attempted another brash exit. Of course, it was unlikely that Thomas would listen to Logan’s point of view. The borrower seemed to only respect one other individual…an individual who Logan knew conveniently did not have class this morning…

Putting his bowl in the sink, Logan began typing out a lengthy paragraph describing the situation. 

Thomas groaned awake, immediately reminded of his misadventure last night. Thankfully, though, it didn’t feel too bad anymore. Just really sore. He pushed himself up, running a hand across his face. Looking around, he noticed Logan at the table and on his phone.

The borrower tensed but the human was currently not paying any attention to him. Looking around, he saw no sign of Roman either. Maybe now was his chance? He carefully slid out of the blanket but stopped as his sore body protested. He pushed himself over the edge of the couch but the drop below suddenly looked too far, despite Thomas having climbed up and down much larger things. He found himself unable to climb down, fearing he wouldn’t make it.

Only once his text sent did Logan look over at the couch, eyebrows widening when he noticed his tiny guest was awake. “…good morning.”

Thomas flinched back at the greeting, looking back up at Logan before looking back down. “…Morning.”

Logan tapped gently on the tabletop, trying not to appear nervous. Social interactions were never his strong suit. Perhaps hospitality would be a good place to start. “Are you hungry?” 

Thomas shrugged but his stomach betrayed him as it growled, loud in Thomas’ ears. He blushed slightly, resting his hand on his stomach as he continued to looked away. “I…could eat.” At least he got good food out of all this.

Logan nodded. “I have cereal, or if you would prefer something warmer I am certain Patton would make you pancakes.”

Thomas blinked, taking in what Logan said. “Patton?” Was Patton here? He looked around once more for good measure but saw no one.

There was a loud thumping outside, a clear indication someone was sprinting up the stairs.

“I would say that is him now.” Logan turned to the door. There was a slight panting on the other side, Patton pausing to collect his breath before he knocked on the door. Logan gave a slight chuckle. “Come in.”

Patton slowly appeared in the doorway, eyes scanning the floor. Slowly his gaze lifted up. As soon as he spotted Thomas, his eyes lit up both with joy and sympathy.

“Thomas!” Patton came over, sitting down in front of the couch. “Are you alright, kiddo?”

Thomas couldn’t help but smile when he saw Patton. Despite their rough meeting Patton had ended up letting him go and was the one to realize his mistake in mistreating the borrower. Thomas was still nervous around him but he knew Patton to be a good human now. Besides, if Patton was here that meant he had a better chance at getting out of here once again, right?

“I’m better. I’m glad you’re here Patton.” Thomas said.

“Aww!” Patton looked pleased at Thomas’ statement. “That’s what Logan thought, too.”

“Ah, yes.” Logan moved closer, sitting on the floor but keeping his distance. “I assumed you might be more comfortable with Patton around rather than just myself.”

Thomas turned to look at Logan. “Well…considering he was the one to let me go, I’d say so.”

“…of course.” Logan looked crestfallen for a moment, but with a nudge from Patton he took a deep breath and kept going. “Thomas, I would like to apologize if my actions made you feel as though I intended to keep you captive for a lifetime. That was not the case. My only intention was to help you heal before releasing you to your own devices but I know now that was not my decision to make.”

Thomas blinked, not having expected an apology. Especially out of Logan. He looked down. “Uh…thanks.” Logan sounded sincere too, which was both strange and nice. “Does…that mean you aren’t going to stop me from leaving again?”

“Well…” Logan’s sentence dwindled off, the human looking unsure as he shared a glance with Patton.

“We’re not going to stop you, Thomas.” Patton assured Thomas, turning back to the borrower. “But it’s just…we’re both really worried about you. Would you mind sticking around for a little bit, even just breakfast so you can get your energy up? You’re welcome to stay here as long as you like, Logan doesn’t mind.”

Thomas shifted, not liking the idea of staying any longer but…they were giving him a choice, right? And he was hungry and still pretty tired and sore…maybe, staying for breakfast wouldn’t hurt? “Um…breakfast sounds good?”

“Great!” Patton clapped his hands happily, hurrying in to the kitchen to make those promised pancakes. This left Logan once again alone to try and fill the silence.

“Are you feeling any better?” Logan asked.

Thomas nodded and hesitated a moment before speaking. “Yeah, still sore, though thankfully nothing’s broken.” _That_ would have been bad.

“Good, I am thankful for that as well.” Logan gave a small smile. He glanced at the kitchen, wondering if perhaps he should wait for Patton to say this. “I have been meaning to ask you…is it truly necessary that you evacuate the premises?”

Thomas tensed, nodding. “I-Yes, I have to. It’s the rules and…and I…can’t risk being captured again.” Thomas muttered the last part, looking back down. He supposed he was technically captured right now, though with the reveal that Logan wasn’t planning on keeping him here and the addition of Patton, he didn’t feel very trapped at the moment. Surprisingly.

“Rules?” Logan’s face scrunched up slightly in his confusion. “What rules?”

Thomas sighed. At this point, he didn’t really care who knew. “My kind has these rules. Never be seen being the main one and if you are you have to move. You aren’t supposed to talk to the humans either if you are seen. So I’m…basically breaking all of the rules right now.”

“Well, if you are already breaking these rules, it seems as though it would be acceptable to break another.” Logan reasoned.

Thomas shook his head. “It’s-it’s not even about the rules this time, I…” He thought back to his time with each human. Logan and Patton might have had a change of heart. Maybe Roman as well but he couldn’t be sure. He was too out of it the night before to really get anything Roman was saying to him. Virgil…Virgil he was the most worried about. He didn’t want to go back into a cage. Treated like a criminal and ignored in favor of being ‘helped’. He couldn’t go back to that. He began to shake.

Logan’s eyes widened, feeling unsure of what to do to help the borrower. “Patton?” He called over his shoulder.

“Be there in a sec!” Was Patton’s distant reply. 

Logan cursed his poor timing, looking back at the tiny man in front of him. “Thomas, are you alright? Was it something I said?”

Thomas came back to reality, looking up at Logan. “I…I can’t go through all of that again…I _can’t_.”


	15. Pancakes and Promises

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things are going well and Thomas is cautiously optimistic.

“I brought pancakes!” Patton came back into the living room with a steaming stack of food, his cheery demeanor a stark contrast to the current conversation. He sat down, handing a plate to Logan and a smaller plate was set down next to Thomas. 

“Ah, thank you Patton.” Logan picked at his portion, not very hungry considering he already ate.

Thomas smiled at Patton, though it was a bit smaller thanks to Logan and his previous conversation. He took a piece of the food and took a bite. He relaxed when his insides were warmed up. Not to mention the taste was just _really_ good. “Thanks Pat.”

“No problem-o!” Patton grinned, digging into his own pancakes. “So, what did I miss? What were you guys talking about?”

Thomas fidgeted with his pancake. “Uh, just how I really gotta get going after this.” Thomas half lied before taking another bite.

“What?” Patton frowned slightly, looking over at Logan. “Did you ask him yet?”

“Ah, no, I did not get the chance.” Logan admitted.

Thomas blinked, looking between the two humans. “Ask me…what?”

“We were wondering if, well…” Patton bit his lip, looking unsure. “You’d want to stay with us?”

“Patton, that is perhaps the worst possible way you could have phrased that.” Logan observed.

Thomas eyes widened and he backed up a step. “S-Stay?” He had _just_ been talking to Logan about how he _couldn’t_ stay.

“Oh, I don’t mean like that!” Patton, worried, glanced at Logan for assistance.

“In no way do we intend to keep you here.” Logan assured the borrower. “However, we also did not want you to feel forced to leave what is also your home because of our presence.”

“You’re more than welcome to stay in the walls.” Patton explained, realizing his statement might have been misinterpreted. “You don’t even have to come out if you don’t want to, but if you _did_ we could bake cookies and have slumber parties and-”

“I think what Patton means is that if you required anything we would be more than willing to offer our assistance.” Logan cut off Patton’s daydreaming.

“Not that you aren’t capable!” Patton hurried to add on.

Thomas furrowed his eyebrows, unsure of how to process what the human’s had suggested. He…really _didn’t_ want to leave his home here. He had been here since he had moved out of his family’s home after all. 

And Logan and Patton seemed to have changed. They were treating him better and despite them wanting Thomas to stay, they weren’t trapping him. Again, they were giving him a choice and…Thomas _did_ appreciate it. Really, the only two he had to be worried about were Virgil and maybe, probably Roman. Maybe he could simply avoid those humans? Have them think he actually left? Would that even work though? He wasn’t sure.

“I…I don’t know.” It definitely would be lot less of a hassle. And maybe Logan was right. Did the rules even matter at this point?

“No pressure.” Logan put a hand up, clearly attempting to drop the subject for now. 

Of course, this was difficult with Patton shifting anxiously back and forth on his heels, looking like a nervous puppy. “Where else would you go?”

“W-Well…” Thomas rubbed the back of his neck. It wouldn’t really do any good to tell them the exact location he had been planning to go to. “Just…I was planning on going to one of the other buildings in the complex. One that was several houses down.”

“But wouldn’t that be dangerous?” Patton gave him a worried look.

“It would seem preferable to stick to a… _known_ danger.” Logan observed, glancing between Patton and himself. He wasn’t ignorant to how the borrower view all humans, themselves included.

“I mean…usually I’d agree but you guys knowing about me…kind of changes things.” Thomas sighed, looking down. “I don’t-I don’t _want_ to leave, this is my home after all, has been for the past few years but I…” Thomas trailed off, not knowing how to explain.

“We can just act like we don’t know about you!” Patton insisted, leaning forwards slightly. “It’ll be like nothing changed, promise.”

Thomas sighed. “Well, what about Roman or…or Virgil. And, I’m sorry but I don’t think you guys would be able to do it. And really, I don’t blame you.” 

“I believe you are correct.” Logan affirmed. “However, in that case perhaps we could come to some form of agreement. We would promise to stay out of your way and do anything you asked that might make it easier for you to move covertly throughout the building.”

“And Roman and Virgil wouldn’t give you any trouble.” Patton spoke up, wanting to defend his friends. “I know they acted a bit strangely yesterday, but I promise they’re really nice if you give them a chance.”

Thomas looked between the two human before looking down. Again, he truly didn’t want to leave. And maybe…this could work. Both Patton and Logan seemed pretty sincere and while he was still worried about the other two, he could always just avoid their apartments…

He was breaking so many rules but you know what? Screw it. “…Okay.” If things seemed like they were going sour he could always try to leave again. Preferably when the weather was better.

“Really?” Patton gasped, covering his mouth with his palms. “Thomas, that’s wonderful! I promise, you won’t regret this.” 

Even Logan’s eyebrows shifted up slightly in surprise, the usually stoic nerd seeming pleased with this outcome.

Seeing the two happy, especially Patton, did lift Thomas’ mood a bit. “Yeah…” He really did hope he wouldn’t come to regret this. “Anyway, I should probably get going now.” He had a lot to think about and new borrowing plans to make.

“What, so soon?” Patton looked disappointed. 

“Patton.” Logan said in a gentle warning tone. 

“Oh, alright.” Patton sighed. He perked up again, getting an idea. “Do you want some help?” Patton offered, setting his palm down next to the borrower.

Thomas flinched back and stared at the hand. “Um…” He’d rather not but he wasn’t exactly in the best condition right now. He sighed. “S-Sure.” He hesitated several moments before stepping onto Patton’s palm and settling down in the middle. This was at least better than being trapped in a grip.

“Careful.” Logan advised, looking nervous as Patton slowly stood with the borrower in hand.

“I am.” Patton assured him. “Now, where to, Thomas?”

Thomas looked around, trying to focus enough to remember where is entrance was. “Just-Just set me down on the floor near the bookshelf.” He told Patton, knowing his entrance was behind it.

“Okie-dokie!” Patton went over and did as Thomas asked, peeking down underneath the furniture to try and spot the near-invisible door in the wall he knew must be there.

“What are you looking at?” Logan asked, coming down to lay on the other side and also peer under the bookshelf.

Thomas let a small smile show on his face. “My entrance into the walls.” Thomas explained before pushing on the wall to reveal the door.

Logan’s eyes widened, having never seen one of the secret entrances. 

“Bye Thomas!” Patton did his best to try and wave in the limited space. “See you later!”

Thomas waved back, silently hoping he wouldn’t see Patton so soon, though he found himself not liking the idea of never seeing the human again. He walked into the walls, the door closing behind him.


	16. Kill 'em with Kindness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Roman and Patton have good intentions, surely, but...

Thomas went to bed that night actually thinking that everything was going to be okay. Which was strange after everything that had just happened but it was nice.

When he woke up he decided to stay in a bit longer than he usually would. Unpacking everything he had tried to take with him that _wasn’t_ completely ruined by the rain. He looked around his home with a smile. He was glad he didn’t have to leave it.

As he went about this business he thought he heard the distant voices of both Patton and Roman but he ignored it. He didn’t need to worry about the humans right now. He had dealt with them enough. When Thomas was ready to head out again he went to his exit and gave it a careful push. 

It didn’t budge.

Blinking, Thomas tried again, harder this time. It opened just a smidge but then caught on something. A small panic entered into Thomas mind but he shook it away. He had other exits after all but the blocked one…the one that was in Patton’s room that Patton actually knew about, well that was troubling.

Thomas decided to go through the other exit in Patton’s room. One that led him straight onto the desk. He looked first to make sure the room was clear, before looking to where is exit was. He blinked when he saw the small pile of…miniature furniture up against his exit. He noticed a tiny bed and a tiny table, along with a number of other things. Enough stuff to keep him from getting out.

Thomas was confused, before realizing that it must have happened when he had heard Patton and Roman’s voices earlier. And if he listened closely, he could hear them talking in what seemed to be the kitchen. Taking one last glance at all the stuff, Thomas went back into the walls and headed towards the voices.

“Smaller, Patton!” Roman insisted, cutting out miniature ingredients in the hopes of making a tiny sandwich. 

“This is the smallest cupcake pan we have, Ro.” Patton whined, looking slightly distressed.

“Alright, alright.” Roman conceded, looking into the pan as Patton poured the batter. “I suppose it will just have to be a rather large cake.”

What…were they doing? Thomas asked himself as he leaned around the toaster to see the two humans. At first he thought they were making lunch or something for themselves but…the food was too small. It wouldn’t even fill a human up as a snack. Well, maybe the cake they were apparently making could but Thomas thought human’s called those cupcakes.

It was then that Thomas realized what they must be doing. Not only had they given him miniature furniture but they were also trying to make him mini food. Thomas groaned. He thought they said they would leave him alone, this was basically the exact opposite of doing that. He watched a bit more, leaning a bit farther out to see what else they were making.

“Can you set a timer?” Patton asked, using oven mitts to put the tray into the oven.

“Of course, Padre.” Roman paused his own task, reaching over to set a timer on the microwave. He smiled, gaze drifting back to the task at hand…only to drift back to the toaster as his eyes caught movement. Roman’s eyes widened. 

Thomas noticed the shift and looked up, only to meet eyes with Roman. Yelping in surprise and a bit of fear, Thomas started towards his exit. However, in his haste he ended up tripping on his own feet and landing on the ground. “Ow.” That wasn’t going to help his injuries.

“Thomas, are you alright?” Roman gasped, coming closer and leaning down to inspect the borrower.

“Thomas?!” Patton said excitedly, tossing his oven mitts to the side and rushing over to Roman’s side. “Did you get our presents?”

“I’m fine.” Thomas answered Roman, slowly getting up. He looked warily at the two humans, both very close. “And uh…sorta?” How was he supposed to go about this?

“We- well, _I_ in particular- just wanted to apologize for my horrid behavior the other day.” Roman shook his head sadly, looking disappointed in himself. 

“And I helped.” Patton gave a big grin, looking proud.

“I was fairly certain you didn’t want to hear from us, so we discussed that a gift might be the best form of apology.” Roman explained sheepishly. “Although…I couldn’t exactly figure out the singular perfect gift.”

“But that’s when I told him they’re _all_ perfect!” Patton exclaimed. 

“Well, uh, not that I don’t appreciate it or anything but uh…” Thomas sighed. “You…kind of blocked my exit.” Thomas revealed. 

The humans turned to each other, looking a bit thrown off by this development.

“…oh.” Patton said finally, looking sheepish. “I…guess we didn’t think about that.”

“It’s-It’s fine.” Thomas reassured. “I know you meant well and all, I just need them moved so I can get out that way.”

“Of course.” Roman agreed hurriedly, thoroughly embarrassed. “I’ll do so right now.” He practically ran out of the room, and a scattering of noises could be heard in the other room. 

“I’m so sorry, Thomas.” Patton clasped his hands in front of his body. “It was my idea to put them there. We weren’t sure where else you’d find them.”

Thomas winced at the noises before looking up at Patton. “It’s okay Pat and I really do appreciate it but I…I don’t think I can accept them.” Thomas said the last part nervously, wondering how the humans would react to that.

“What?” Patton tilted his head to the side, looking confused. “But why not?”

Just then, Roman returned. “There, it should be ah…clear now.” He murmured. “Although I was… a bit unsure as to where to put them instead.”

Patton winced, glancing between Roman and Thomas. “Uh…”

Thomas bit his lip nervously. “Uh, thanks Roman.” He said before taking a deep breath. If anything, his exit was right there. “But I was just telling Patton that I…I don’t think I can accept your gifts…”

“…oh.” Roman failed to hide his disappointment. “It was too much, wasn’t it?”

Thomas frowned. For some reason, he had not been expecting disappointment. “Uh, I mean, a little. But honestly, I don’t even think all of that stuff would _fit_.” His space in the walls was not that big. He could barely fit the few things he had in it already. The other reason he couldn’t accept it was the rules but at this point did the rules really even matter? Looking up at these two humans, letting himself be seen and talking to them, he had already broken all the really important rules.

“Well, we could keep it out here.” Patton offered. “And then it can be all set up for when you visit?”

Thomas’ eyes widened. “Oh, um, well I-” Thomas rubbed the back of his neck, riddled with nerves. “I, I really think you should just take it back. Get your money back and stuff.” Thomas said, looking anywhere but at the humans.

Patton shifted on his feet, looking uncertain. “But-”

“Patton, it’s fine.” Roman sighed. “Thomas, if that’s truly how you feel I can…return them this afternoon.”

Thomas nodded. “I really do appreciate the uh, the thought though.” Thomas said. “I just…yeah.” Thomas really did feel bad about this but he also didn’t think he would be out and about enough to have much use for the furniture and he didn’t want the human’s to waste their money.

“Okay, no gifts.” Roman brightened slightly, remembering the half-finished project still on the counter. “But are edible gifts acceptable?”

“Yeah! Wanna join us for lunch?” Patton said, perking up. “It was going to be a surprise, so ah…surprise!”

“Oh! Uh…” He looked at the food before looking between the two humans. He was hungry and it wasn’t like he hadn’t accepted food from them before. And they had gone through so much trouble to make borrower sized food. “Yeah, I guess I could join you guys.” He agreed, giving the two humans a small smile.

“Wait, truly?” Roman’s eyes seemed to shine, clearly not having expected this answer. “Wonderful!” 

“Yay!” Patton’s reaction was just as excited, the human bouncing up and down as he clapped his hands.

Thomas’ smile grew a bit bigger. It made him kind of happy, seeing that the two were also happy that he was staying. And hey, nothing had happened so far! No grabbing or touching and they were actually listening to him. It was…nice.


	17. Cupcakes Fix Most Social Blunders

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Apology cupcakes seem to smooth things over on the Roman end of things.

The timer dinged, and this seemed to set both humans back on track. They scurried about their jobs, Patton pulling the cupcakes out of the oven and Roman finishing the sandwiches. 

“Here you are, Thomas.” Roman proudly presented the miniature sandwich, holding it delicately between his thumb and forefinger.

Thomas took is after a moment. It was still a little bigger than what a sandwich normally would be to a human but Thomas was still impressed he sent a smile up at Roman. “Thanks.” He hesitated for a moment before coming closer to where the two were and took a bite of his food. He grinned at the taste. 

“Do you like it?” Roman asked eagerly. 

Patton set down the tray to cool, coming over to see Thomas’ reaction as well.

Thomas nodded and took another bite. “Yeah! It’s really good…how did you get it so small?” Thomas asked, once again looking at the size of the sandwich and then at the size of these humans. It seemed impossible from his point of view.

“A steady hand…and a lot of practice.” Roman grinned sheepishly, looking over at his scraps from earlier. He handed Patton a regular sized sandwich, and the two began to eat their own lunch.

Thomas nodded and took another bite. He watched the two humans as he ate, looking mostly at Roman. Again, he was surprised at how good Roman was being, about not grabbing him or anything. A foggy memory came to his mind. “Roman? Did you…Were you the one who found me yesterday?”

Roman gave a surprised nod. “Do you… not remember? I mean, you did seem pretty out of it, I suppose.”

“I…kind of. It’s a bit foggy but I…I do remember you being there.” Thomas said, looking down. He rubbed at the bruises on his torso. “Why did you…help me.”

“Why did I help you?” Roman set down the rest of his sandwich, concerned. “Thomas, you were hurt. It was the least I could do, especially given our- well, _my-_ awful behavior before.”

Thomas hummed and looked back up at Roman. “You weren’t there when I woke up, though.” Thomas remembered. “Logan and Patton let me go…would you have?” Thomas could see that Roman acted different now than before but he needed the extra confirmation. And with Patton right there, he felt braver trying to get it.

“Thomas, of _course_ I would.” Roman insisted, placing a hand over his heart. “Though you may not remember it, I told you as much the moment I found you. Truly, I just didn’t want any further harm to befall you.”

Thomas felt the tension ease in his shoulders. “Okay, I…I believe you. Especially considering you haven’t done anything while I’ve been out here.” Thomas smiled. “Thanks for helping me back there. I’d…probably be dead by now if no one had found me.” Thomas tried to cover up that sad thought with a chuckle but it didn’t really work.

“Oh, kiddo…” Patton looked at the borrower sympathetically.

“Well, I’m certainly happy I was able to be of service.” Roman stood a bit taller, looking pleased with his own heroic deed. “And it certainly worked out most favorably, I think we’d all agree.”

“Yeah…yeah it did. Honestly, I didn’t even want to leave in the first place. This apartment has been my home for years now. I just…the rules and I was…scared to stay too…” Thomas admitted, rubbing the back of his neck as he didn’t meet the humans’ eyes.

“At least you don’t have to be scared anymore.” Patton smiled down at Thomas. “Instead you get to stay, _and_ you made four new friends!”

Thomas winced. “Um…three friends.” Thomas corrected Patton, biting his lip.

“Three?” Patton frowned, counting off on his fingers.

“I ah, think he’s not including Virgil, Padre.” Roman explained, catching on quicker.

Thomas nodded. “I know I said before that Roman treated me the worst-sorry about that by the way-but it was clearly Virgil who treated me the worst. He…he locked me in a cage, called me a criminal and told me he was gonna help me despite me not wanting the help.” Thomas sighed. 

The humans looked at each other briefly. 

“Yes, his behavior was certainly criminal.” Roman nodded, recalling how he had rescued Thomas from captivity. He wasn’t about to try and defend Virgil’s actions, especially after he had just come into the clear himself.

Patton was a different story. “Well…I’d agree that his behavior…wasn’t great.” The human twiddled his thumbs. “But you can’t judge him too harshly, kiddo. We all did things we regret. Virgil’s really an angel once you get to know him.”

It was true that Thomas had seen the soft side of Virgil multiple times when watching him through the walls. But…“Maybe to you guys and other humans…but he still sees me as a thief and spy and I-I don’t think that’s gonna change…”

“You never know unless you talk to him.” Patton urged. 

Thomas’ eyes widened. “But if I come out and talk to him…th-then…” Thomas began to shake. Virgil still had that cage waiting for him after all. And he was sure if he got his hands on him after all of this there would be no compromise. The cage would become his home. “I-I can’t…not again.”

“Stop scaring him, Pat!” Roman insisted.

“But-!” Patton looked at Roman, feeling uncertain. After a few moments he let out a sigh.

Taking this as a sign of defeat, Roman smiled and clapped his hands together. “Let’s get back on track. Who’s ready for dessert?”

Thomas flinched at the loud clap but nodded. “Um, yeah, dessert sounds great.” Anything to get away with not talking about Virgil anymore.

“Patton, want to help with the frosting?” Roman asked, pulling out the ingredients. 

“Sure.” Patton smiled, pulling himself out of his slight funk. “Thomas, do you want to help too?”

“Oh, uh…how?” Thomas asked, looking at all the things that were so much bigger than him. 

“Indeed, I was thinking the same thing.” Roman admitted, eyes measuring Thomas’ height.

Patton hummed thoughtfully, watching Roman start up the mixer. “Well, we need a taste tester, don’t we?”

Thomas blinked before smiling. “Heh, I can do that.”

Patton poured in some more sugar, watching it all fluff up. Once it was looking consistent, Roman pulled out a spoon and scooped some up before he held it out for Thomas.

Thomas scooped some up with his hand and took a bite. His eyes widened at just how sweet it was. “That is _really_ sweet, but also really good.” Thomas said, licking some more off his hand.

Roman stuck the rest in his mouth, giving a slight moan of approval.

“I think it’s ready!” Patton giggled. He turned off the mixer, then set about putting the cupcakes onto a plate. Roman was standing by, using a utensil to carefully scoop the frosting into a slightly rushed covering. 

“Here you are.” Roman served Thomas the most attractive-looking cake, wanting the borrower to enjoy it.

“Whoa.” Thomas had seen cupcakes before but he had never even dreamed of being able to get one for himself. Human’s always seemed to gobble them up with little to no leftovers. And if there were, they were placed away in the fridge to be eaten soon after. But now, now he had one all to himself, made specifically for him. 

Thomas could get used to this.

He took a piece of the cupcake with frosting on it and took a bite, moaning at the taste just as Roman had. It was just as good as it looked.

“Success!” Patton squealed, high-fiving Roman before they each took their own cupcakes.

Thomas chuckled as he continued to eat but had to stop once he was beginning to feel full. Looking at the cupcake, he realized he had barely even dented it. There was still practically a whole cupcake left. “Thanks you guys. That was so good.” Thomas said, turning his attention back to the humans.

“We’re so glad you enjoyed it.” Roman grinned. Perhaps his apology hadn’t been a complete flop after all. “You’re welcome to come back anytime for as many cupcakes as you like.” 

“That…sounds great.” Thomas said with a smile. “I should probably get going now though. But I’ll keep the offer in mind.”

“Wonderful!” Roman seemed pleased with this response.

Patton looked thoughtful for a moment. “…hey Thomas?”

“Yeah?” Thomas asked, turning to Patton.

“Would you…want to come back tomorrow?” Patton asked, ignoring the way Roman was looking at him. 

“Oh! Uh…I mean…sure. I guess I could?” Thomas said, rubbing the back of his neck. If it meant more food he be more than willing. And…he could admit that the human’s were great company. He enjoyed talking with them.

“Great!” Patton seemed excited. “Roman has class but you can come have lunch with me. I can meet you by the hole in my room?”

“Sure, sounds like a plan.” Thomas turned and headed towards his exit, not even even worried about the human’s knowing about this one. “See ya guys. Thanks again.” He said with a wave and then went back into the walls.

“Bye Thomas!” Patton waved, watching the borrower disappear. 

Roman merely raised an eyebrow, attention still focused on Patton.

“…don’t look at me like that.” Patton finally acknowledged his fellow human. “It’s going to be fine.”

“I’m not saying anything contrary.” Roman put his hands up in defense. “But if you’re planning what I think you’re planning, I just want to make it clear I have no part in this.”

“Deal.” Patton nodded, the two getting to work cleaning up the kitchen.


	18. Intervention That No One Asked For

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hey Patton, what made you think that shoving these two in the same room would be a good idea?

Thomas found himself in front of his exit at lunchtime the next day. He was actually looking forward to spending some time with Patton. With a small smile he entered the human’s bedroom. “Patton?” He called out as his door closed behind him.

“Hey Thomas!” Patton greeted, waving at the borrower and looking only slightly worried. It wasn’t hard to see why, as just across from him an uncomfortable-looking Virgil sat fidgeting. 

Virgil’s eyes locked on the borrower the moment he came out of the wall. “Um…hey.”

Thomas’ smile dropped and he froze. He started to shake at the sight of Virgil _right there_ and took a step back towards his exit. “N-No…” Thomas managed to get out. His eyes flickered to Patton. Had Patton set this up? Had he been tricked? And just when he had been starting to trust the human, too.

“Now Thomas, before you freak out…” Patton spoke slowly, trying to calm the already panicking borrower.

Virgil’s eyes widened, noticing the way Thomas was already backing up. Thinking quickly, Virgil lunged forwards and covered the borrower’s exit with his hand.

“Ah!” Thomas screamed, running away from Virgil and now finding himself in the middle of the room with Virgil blocking his exit. He whimpered and started to curl up on himself. He knew trusting these humans was a bad idea! 

“Virgil!” Patton gasped.

“I- he was gonna run away!” Virgil protested. Patton laid down on his stomach to be at eye level with the borrower.

“Thomas, it’s okay, he’s not going to hurt you.” Patton explained. 

Thomas shook his head. “No, no! Let me go!” Thomas cried, lost in his own head as he ducked and continued to curl up on himself.

“Don’t worry, we’re not trapping you here, I promise. Right, Virgil?” Patton gave Virgil a meaningful look. 

“…Right.” Slowly, the emo moved his hand away from the entrance.

Slowly, Thomas lifted his head to see Virgil moving. He wanted nothing more than to run for it and never come back but something stopped him. He looked over to Patton, who was on the floor with him. “Wh-Why…?” Why had Patton gone against his wishes of not seeing Virgil?

“…I…” Patton hesitated, hating seeing the borrower so scared again. 

“…He did it because of me, alright?” Virgil spoke up, sparring Patton and taking the blame.

Thomas’ attention snapped back over to Virgil and he uncurled himself to take a step back. “…Why? Because you just want to trap me again? ‘Help’ me and whatnot. Put-Put me back in that-that _cage_.” Thomas said through grit teeth, eyes shining with tears.

“N-no!” Virgil shook his head. “No, I’m not gonna do any of that. I got rid of the cage already. I came here to apologize for that stuff.”

“You…you did?” Thomas asked warily, looking between the two humans. 

“Yeah.” Virgil followed Patton’s example laying down on his stomach. “…I’m sorry.”

Thomas looked at Virgil for a moment. “How do I know you mean it?” Thomas asked quietly.

“I’m not grabbing you right now?” Virgil shrugged.

“Virgil!” Patton said sternly, looking upset. “Don’t be rude.” Virgil let out a sigh.

“And because…I wouldn’t lie in front of Patton.” Virgil rested his chin on his arms. “And Patton will vouch for me, so that’s worth something I guess.”

“So you…aren’t going to trap me again?” Thomas asked. “Or call me a criminal or anything like that?”

“No, I’m not.” Virgil shook his head. “And I’m sorry I did that in the first place. It was a real messed-up thing to do and even if I was trying to protect you I shouldn’t have tried to control you. You’re a person and I promise to respect that.”

Thomas nodded along to what Virgil was saying. “Th-Thank you, Virgil.” The borrower said, a small smile on his face. He…believed him, if only because Patton was there and grinning at Virgil.

“Aww, I’m so glad you guys are getting along.” Patton sighed, smiling and laying his head down.

“Uh, yeah.” Virgil grimaced, looking over at Patton. “But Pat? Kinda rude of you to go behind Thomas’ back like that.”

Patton frowned. “But-”

“No buts.” Virgil insisted. “You should have told him what was up.”

“Yeah.” Thomas turned to Patton. “I…I almost thought you betrayed me for a second there.” He had almost lost all trust he had in Patton.

“Oh no, kiddo, I would never do that!” Patton gazed at Thomas with a heartbroken expression. “I just didn’t think you’d come if you knew Virgil was gonna be here.”

“I mean…you aren’t wrong.” Thomas sighed. “I can see why you did it, I know you just wanted to help but…still.” 

“…I’m sorry.” Patton’s expression became downcast. “But I promise, I only did it because I knew Virgil wouldn’t hurt a fly.”

“Easy there, Pat.” Virgil growled lightly. “I’ve got a reputation to keep.”

“I…wasn’t worried about Virgil hurting me. I’ve seen enough for myself that Virgil isn’t the violent type…Just about the whole cage and trapping thing.” Thomas explained, looking away.

“…right.” Patton winced. “I’m sorry, Thomas. I’m so sorry for scaring you like that.”

“What the-? Patton, I’m the one who covered his exit.” Virgil raised an eyebrow.

“I know, but I feel bad.” Patton admitted. “Besides, you wouldn’t have even been here to do that if I hadn’t called you over.”

“It’s okay Pat, I forgive you.” He turned to Virgil and bit his lip. “And…I forgive you too. Though…trust is another thing entirely…” 

“That’s fair.” Virgil said with a sad shrug. 

“…do you still want to stay for lunch?” Patton asked timidly.

Thomas thought for a moment, looking between Patton and Virgil. He sighed. “…Yeah. I’ll stay for a bit.” He decided. He was still weary around Virgil but he knew Patton wouldn’t let anything happen to him at the very least.

“Great!” Patton reached out for Thomas, but before he could grab the borrower Virgil’s arm shot out and grabbed his wrist. Patton looked to Virgil in confusion, noticing his friend’s wide-eyed gaze.

“Uh…sorry.” Virgil bit his lip, slinking his own arm back towards his side. “I just, well, I mean, I know I wouldn’t want to be grabbed.”

Thomas flinched back as the hand reached for him but stared, almost in awe, at the fact that Virgil of all people stopped Patton. He turned towards the human, giving him a small smile. “Thanks. And uh…you would be right. I don’t really care for the whole…grabbing thing.”

“Oh, right.” Patton looked sheepish, laying his palm down for Thomas instead.

Thomas looked at the hand for a moment, before taking a deep breath. He could do this, it would be the quickest way to get there after all. And Patton was good, nothing would happen. Thomas took a few hesitant steps towards the hand before climbing onto it and settling in the center. The last time someone had offered him a hand had been with Virgil, surprisingly. Thinking back on that was weird. So much had changed in such a small amount of time.

“That tickles.” Patton giggled, surprised once again by the feeling of someone walking on his palm. As soon as Thomas was settled, Patton stood up and began making his way towards the kitchen.

“Careful, Pat.” Virgil warned, following close behind.

Thomas glanced at Virgil, a little surprised at first but than he thought about it for a moment. Even back when he first met Virgil, after the initial scare of course, Virgil had seemed pretty worried for him just all around. For some reason. It would make sense if that was still the case. He didn’t think Virgil needed to worry though. Surprisingly, he felt safe in Patton’s hands.


	19. Thomas You're Fiiiiiiiiine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> No but seriously he's fine we're at the end of our journey folks.

Patton set Thomas down in the middle of the dining table, where a few tiny dishes already sat and two regular sized dishes were placed at chairs on either side. 

“Ta-da!” Patton said proudly, taking a seat.

Virgil eased himself into the chair across from Patton, looking only slightly uncomfortable.

Thomas blinked in surprise at the plates and cups that were _his_ size. Patton must have gotten it from the doll stuff. Well, Thomas wasn’t going to complain about that. He noticed the sandwich, scaled down to his size on the plate and he grinned. It was cool that Patton was willing to do things like that for him. Thomas would be fine with pieces of normal sized food but Patton-and Roman-went the extra mile. It made the borrower feel good.

He picked it up and took a bite, smiling and the flavor. “Thank you Patton, this is really good!”

“You’re welcome!” Patton said happily, all smiles as he dug in to his own lunch. Virgil smirked, taking a bite of his sandwich.

Thomas finished up his sandwich with a content sigh before once again glancing up at Virgil. Thomas wasn’t sure if bringing it up was even a good idea or not but he needed to know. “…Virgil?”

Virgil stopped mid-chew, surprised that he was being addressed. He quickly swallowed his mouthful of bread so that he could speak again. “Yeah?”

Thomas fidgeted with his clothes, looking down as Virgil’s attention was suddenly all on him. “…Back when you first found me…that whole compromise that we made…were you really going to let me go at the end of the week?” Thomas knew it didn’t matter now. But he still wanted to know, for whatever reason. Simply curiosity, maybe?

Virgil blinked, surprised by the question. “Of course.” Virgil answered honestly. “I mean…I thought that by then you’d change your mind and stick around, but…yeah. I did.” Virgil turned away from him slightly. “I figured it would suck trying to keep someone around who didn’t want to be there.”

Thomas nodded slowly, surprised by the answer. “Oh…that’s good to know.” At least trying to go back to Virgil in the beginning had been a valid choice on his end. “…Are you still mad that I spied on you guys?” He asked, trying to hold in a wince at the fact that he actually brought it up.

“No, I mean, not really.” Virgil ducked his head, looking embarrassed. “I get it now. I just was kind of thrown off by the whole borrower falling on my head thing. Kinda made me paranoid.”

Patton by this point had stopped eating his own lunch, looking back and forth between his two friends and feeling like he was missing a lot of important context clues.

“I guess I get it. I mean, I would be paranoid if that happened to me too.” Thomas chuckled.

“Thanks.” Virgil smiled briefly, only for it to turn into a frown. “Doesn’t really excuse my behavior, though. I’m sorry I was such a jerk about the whole thing. I’m not exactly a “people person”.” Virgil put up air quotes to emphasize his point.

“I will physically fight you.” Patton’s voice was quiet, looking over at Virgil sternly.

Thomas, having heard Patton’s loving threats to Virgil before, ignored him. “Thanks, that….that actually means a lot, that you realized that.” 

“Took me long enough.” Virgil let out a soft snort.

Thomas chuckled. “Uh, yeah.” Thomas couldn’t help but think what would have happened if Virgil had realized sooner. Well…he never would have met the other humans or consider them…friends. Thomas smiled. “I guess one thing came out of all of this.” Thomas smiled. “You know, after all the bad stuff passed. I…I don’t feel lonely anymore.” 

And it was true. For the first time since he had left home all those years ago, he didn’t feel alone.

“Awww!” Patton cupped his hands together, tilting his head to the side as he looked down at Thomas fondly. “That’s so sweet!”

Thomas felt a small blush on his cheeks as he rubbed the back of his neck. “It’s true though. I wish there were other borrowers around but…well, I’ve been on my own for a good 10 years now and haven’t seen another borrower since moving out of my family’s place…” Thomas looked down, sad at the thought. It made Thomas question if there were even that many borrowers left.

“Oh no…” Patton said softly, looking distraught at the thought.

“Why didn’t you stay with your family then?” Virgil asked, raising an eyebrow. 

Thomas shrugged. “Independence? I didn’t know that I wouldn’t meet anyone after I left. And I couldn’t go back, my parents deserve their time by themselves.” Not to mention he wasn’t completely sure where they even were. It had been ten years after all.

“Don’t worry, we’re here for you Thomas.” Patton gasped excitedly. “Oh my goodness, _we_ can be your family!”

“Pretty dysfunctional family…” Virgil muttered.

Thomas blinked, looking at Patton. “You would…want to be my family?” Friends, sure, but _family_?

“Of course!” Patton looked at Thomas earnestly. “We care about you, kiddo.”

Thomas furrowed his eyebrows. “Why?” Thomas couldn’t help but ask.

“Why?” Patton tilted his head, confused by the question.

“Because Patton cares about everyone.” Virgil rolled his eyes fondly.

“Oh, c’mon, Virgil.” Patton teased. “You know you care about this lil’ guy too!” Patton reached over and tousled Thomas’ hair.

Thomas yelped as Patton suddenly touched his head, the sudden action surprising him. “P-Patton!” 

“Oh, sorry.” Patton pulled back sheepishly, but a grin was still on his face. 

“Look-” Virgil turned to Patton, looking stern with his hood up. “-if Thomas is really gonna stay with us, you can’t _do_ stuff like that.”

“At least warn me.” Thomas said, finding that he didn’t actually mind the actual action, just the suddenness of it.

Patton nodded, but his grin only seemed to grow at Virgil’s glare. “I knew you cared.” Patton said teasingly.

“…Whatever.” Virgil huffed, sinking back slightly in his chair.

Thomas couldn’t help but chuckle at that. “Come on Virgil, just admit it.” The borrower teased, stepping closer towards him. 

Virgil sank further into his hoodie, shoulders raising up to his ears as the human curled in on himself.

“…can’t it just be like, an understood thing?” Virgil muttered, his voice starting to be muffled by his hoodie.

Thomas chuckled. “So you’re _implying_ that you care about me.”

There was a slight laugh from the usually stoic emo. “Yeah, I guess you could say that.”

Thomas felt himself grin. “I can work with that.” His smile suddenly got a bit more shy. “I guess, I uh…I care about you guys as well.” Thomas admitted, looking between the two humans.

“You mean it?” Patton’s gaze was soft, his eyes sparkling. Virgil even leaned slightly forwards.

Thomas nodded. “I do.” He said softly, a smile to match his tone on his face.

“Oh!” Patton reached out for Thomas excitedly, pausing in mid air moments before Virgil would have stopped him anyways. It seemed he was finally learning. “Can I hug you?”

Thomas stepped back a bit but then blinked. He smiled. “Sure.”

With a small excited squeal, Patton scooped Thomas up and gently pressed him to his chest, twirling slightly around the kitchen. “Oooh, this is gonna be so much fun! You can join us for game nights and movie nights and sleepover nights and-”

As Patton began to ramble on, Thomas smiled, snuggling into the hug. These humans were now his _family_.

And Thomas wouldn’t have it any other way.

**————————————-**

Thomas came out of the walls, finding that he was now under the couch in Roman’s apartment. He could hear the humans above him talking and laughing with one another but Thomas didn’t feel any fear. Instead, he walked out into the open and used his hook to climb up the coffee table. As he made it to the top, he turned and faced the humans. “Hey guys.”

“Thomas!” They all greeted with varying levels of over enthusiasm. 

“We were just picking a film for the evening.” Logan explained. “Would you like to choose?” 

Roman held a few dvds up for Thomas to inspect, looking eager.

Thomas hummed, looking between all the movies. None of them looked familiar, of course, but he chose the one that looked good to him. “How about that one? Toy Story?”

“Ooh, I love that one.” Patton snuggled up into the couch some more. “Nice choice!”

“Hey Thomas, I saved you some popcorn.” Virgil smirked, leaning over to hand Thomas a kernel. “Princey was trying to hog it all.”

“How dare you accuse me of such a thing!” Roman gasped.

Thomas chuckled. “Thanks, Virge.” He said as he grabbed the piece of popcorn. He turned around to sit and face the screen there on the table.

“Thomas, would you care to join us?” Logan asked, putting his hand down to allow the borrower the chance to join them on the couch. The other humans looked down at him expectantly.

Thomas blinked before smiling. He should have expected they would let him sit by himself. Which Thomas was thankful for. Thomas answered by stepping onto Logan’s hand.

Logan smiled at him, pulling his arm back and resting it between himself and Patton. 

“Glad you’re here, kiddo.” Patton said softly as the intro music began to play.

Thomas smiled. “So am I.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed this story! Let us know what you thought of this perspective story in the comments below!


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